Amnesia: Hermione's Lament
by EvieHana
Summary: August 31st haunted her. An ever changing timeline. A masked man who helps her one moment and hurts her the next. Has Hermione just gone round the bend? She hardly knows since she can't remember most of her life. Rated M for violence, character death and the occasional smutty scene. (HG x multi)
1. Chapter 1

Hello, dear readers. I am just now getting back into my writing and I'm putting this little plot bunny out there in hopes that people may want to see more of this story. This popped into my head while watching the anime "Amnesia". Please be sure to drop a review and let me know what you think. Constructive criticism is much appreciated. I do not have a beta so all errors are my own and I will happily fix them if pointed out.

 **I do not own Harry Potter or Amnesia.**

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Blackness was the last thing she could remember and it was currently what was surrounding her now. Seventeen year old know-it-all Hermione Granger sat up and rubbed her eyes, trying to take in the dark room that surrounded her. She recognized nothing around her and tried not to panic as she pat down her clothing to search for her wand. She was in a silk nightgown from what she could tell by feel. She extended her hands along the bed she was sitting on until she felt the edge to her left and kept going until her hands met a bedside table and finally found the comforting feel of her wand. "Lumos."

The room was decorated in tasteful lavender tones with whitewashed wood. Nothing. Hermione was drawing a complete and total blank which caused her nerves to come back full force. She made her way to the door and quietly opened it and looked both ways down the softly lit corridor. Seeing no one, she extinguished her wand and made her way towards a set of stairs that seemed to be going down. She felt the need to leave. With nothing familiar around her and no memory as to how she came to be here, the only thought in her mind was to get away as quickly and quietly as possible.

The lower level of the house was just as beautiful and well furnished as the room she had come out of but decorated in soft golds and cream. Whoever lived here either came from money or had an excessive amount themselves. The sound of a door closing behind her had Hermione lightly gasping and quickly rushing for cover but she didn't make it out of sight in time. "Mia, what are you doing out of bed? You shouldn't be up yet!" A strong masculine voice sounded behind her but she didn't turn to see who it was and rushed for the front door. She didn't know that voice. She had to get away.

Hermione's fingers just grazed the door handle before she was pulled back into a strong chest by very well defined and very bare arms. "No, let me go! Let me go!" She struggled to get free, jabbing her elbow back into the man's stomach, completely forgetting she was a witch and had a wand in her hand.

The man took the hit with a grunt but didn't relinquish his hold on her and slowly sank to the hardwood floor under them, making soothing sounds in her right ear. "Mia, it's okay. Shhh, it's okay. It's just me. I've been your best friend for six years. Shh, I've got you, love." The struggles slowly stilled and Hermione focused on calming her frantic breathing. She lay her head back against the man's shoulder and let her whiskey colored eyes take in his face.

Strong jaw, full lower lip, slightly thin upper lip, perfectly striaight nose that supported glasses and a mop of uncontrollable black hair. So familiar but she remembered nothing. No name, no memories that supported knowing him for six years. It was all just blackness. Her breathing had picked back up as she started to panic. "I-I don't know you. I can't remember how I got here. Where am I?"

More doors opened and the sound of running feet could be heard on the steps behind them. "What the hell is going on out here? Mia, are you alright, love? The mediwitch said you weren't supposed to be up and about yet. Said between the knock to your head and the potion she gave you, you would be asleep at least until she came back in the morning." Another young man, stopped and crouched before her, his shoulder length black hair falling in waves around his face. She met his slate gray eyes and felt a spark of familiarity but it fled within a moment.

"I- I hit my head? Maybe that's why..." She turned her confused eyes back to the young man holding her.

There was a feminine gasp from the stairs and both all eyes looked in that direction. At the base of the stairs stood a lovely young woman with brilliant red hair in a mint green night robe. Her hurt gaze flicked from Hermione to the man holding her and without a word, she turned on her heel and rushed back up the stairs. The young man holding her sighed and the one crouched beside them tsked lightly. "Sorry, mate, but I get the feeling you may have just taken more than a few steps back with your lady-love. She has always been overly sensitive about your relationship with Mia..."

"I'll talk with her later. We have a more pressing problem right now. Mia, do you recognize him?" The bespectacled man asked, nodding his head towards the other young man.

"...No."

"James, we have a serious problem."

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"Of all the stupid, boneheaded things we have done, we really put our foot in it this time. I can not believe that a quaffle to the back of the head has taken away the memories of the brightest witch of our age." Sirius paced around the sitting room, running agitated fingers through his hair. He growled and stopped before the fireplace and tuned to face them. "I mean, how unlucky can we get? Our final year at Hogwarts starts tomorrow. We leave for the station in the morning and we have completely sabotaged Mia's school career with one misplaced throw."

"You know I'm sitting right here and can fully comprehend what you are saying, right?" Hermione raised one eyebrow as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Furthermore, I believe I can remember magic, it's everything personal that is attached to everyone I've seen so far that is completely blank. Most of you look familiar but I can't place names or how we met, where I am... Its all just...blank."

James nodded and pushed his glasses higher on his nose as he sat on the golden colored couch beside her. "Maybe we should start there then. Tell us what you do remember about yourself. "

"My name is Hermione Jean Granger. My birthday is September 19th and I'm 17 years old. This year will be my 7th year at Hogwarts: School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and my house is Gryffindor. The Headmaster is Albus Dumbledoor and my head of house is Minnerva McGonagal. I have the highest grades in the school and plan to break the record on the most O's achieved on my NEWTs... I'm forgetting something... It's not right." Hermione stood and started to pace herself, wracking her brain for more information. She saw a flash of James in her minds eye but it wasn't right... His eyes... They were green instead of hazel. Rather than the confident smile she had seen on his face since waking up, he had looked somewhat shy and withdrawn. "No, not right... not right..." She turned to pace back in the other direction as she rubbed her forehead but was stopped when she ran into James' chest.

"It's okay, Mia. That's more than we expected you to know. Don't push yourself too hard." James gently grazed the back of his fingers along her cheek. Their eyes met and held for a moment before Hermione started to speak without really knowing what she was saying.

"Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs..." A spike of pain through her head caused her to gasp and rub her forehead again.

"Who is Wormtail? That's not how the map goes." Sirius frowned somewhat before correcting her. "Messrs Moony, Goldwing, Padfoot and Prongs. Mia, you are the fourth and only other Marauder we will ever accept. We met first year on the train and have been inseparable since. Moony took a bit of convincing but given his 'furry little problem' as you call it, that was to be expected. You were the first to figure it out in our first year but never said anything to any of us until we figured it out ourselves two years later."

"Goldwing... So I'm an animagus? What am I?" Hermione didn't know how she knew what they were talking about but she was too excited to really think too much on it. She looked from Sirius to James and back, excitement running down her spine. A sudden itch under her skin had her wanting to be outside so she could find out what she was for herself. "I'm going to go find out." Hermione turned and quickly headed out the french doors that overlooked the expansive yard and garden that was a beautiful part of Clayborne Manor. James had told her about his ancestral home to help calm her nerves, explaining that she had been an almost permanent fixture in the house since they had met. The lavender room she had run out of had been hers for the last six summers and Sirius had moved in as well this summer after a falling out with his family.

"Maybe that's not such a good idea... Do you remember how to transform?" James asked, following her out and catching her hand before she could do anything else.

Hermione looked at them over her shoulder and smiled. "No, but I feel like I know how."

Sirius sighed and shook his head before explaining. "Close your eyes and clear your mind. Reach into your center and feel your core magic. Picture your body slowly transforming and then let it happen. Let the animal within you free."

She felt it, just at her fingertips. Hermione sighed and completely let go of herself into the transformation. Then... nothing. Opening her eyes, she had every intention of asking them what she did wrong when she noticed that she was much shorter than she had been. She barely reached the middle of James shin. _'Oh, my! I did it!'_ She did a happy little hop and made the cutest little screech she had ever heard. She looked down at herself and tilted her head. Taloned bird feet, white chest feathers, golden colored wings. _'I'm some kind of bird... Please do not tell me I'm a chicken!'_ She looked back up at James and Sirius with her plea in her eyes.

They laughed and smiled down at her. "You are a Barn Owl, love, hence Goldwings." Sirius bent and ruffled the feathers to the right of her beak. "You were the first to figure out the transformation too. I doubt we would have been able to do it without you."

She nipped at his finger gently and an image of a giant black dog flashed in her minds eyes and she thought _'Yes, you would have.'_ She gasped and transformed back into her human form. Hermione rubbed her eyes, trying to ease the pain in her head.

"What's wrong?" James asked, his brows pinched in concern.

"I keep getting flashes... memories maybe? I see it for just a second and then it's gone and all I'm left with is a quick pain shooting through my brain." She sighed and let her hand drop.

"Don't force yourself. I think that's enough for tonight. It's nearing midnight and we have to be up bright and early to get you cleared by the mediwitch before we can head out to the station. We'll walk you back to your room." James took her left hand and Sirius her right. Hermione felt safe now wedged between the two. She could only hope that tomorrow delivered good news.

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AN: And that's all I have for today. Please send a review with questions, comments, critiques or just a friendly hello. I hope to hear from you soon.

~EvieHana


	2. Chapter 2

AN: I want to thank you all for the favs/follows and reads AHL received in the one day I posted it. I felt so giddy and inspired when I checked my email this morning that I had to sit down and bang out another chapter for you all. Thank you so much for your support. I did go back and edit the mistakes I found in chapter one. Every time I fixed one while in the editor before posting it, I seemed to make another so I had no idea there were that many mistakes until I went back and read it this morning. Oops.

Shola2001: Thank you so much for taking the time for your review. I'm very glad you already love my story. Lily is in for quite a few ups and downs just as Hermione is. Who wouldn't be threatened by Hermione Granger around her man? LoL These first few chapters are going to be hard on her so stay tuned.

 **Once again, I own nothing.**

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The beautiful Scottish landscape flew by as Hermione gazed out the window of the Hogwarts Express. She smiled softly, listening to the boys catch Remus up to date on everything that had happened that summer while she wrote in the journal in her lap. The mediwitch had suggested that it would be the easiest way to straighten out her memories as they came if she wrote them all down. There was nothing to do about her memory loss than just let them come as they would eventually in time. The first page read 'August 31st, 1977' and was blank afterward. She continued on the next page with today's date of 'September 1st, 1977' and everything she could remember so far along with their rather eventful night previous which filled up quite a few pages. She turned to the next page and continued.

 _'Remus is so sweet. The first thing he did when he saw us on the platform was give me a warm hug but of course at the time I didn't know who he was. Call it instincts if you will but he instantly knew something was wrong and let me go to look me over before turning to the boys and demanding to know what they had done. James blamed Sirius who blamed him in turn. I still don't know who actually hit me with that quaffle. Someone will confess to it eventually if I have anything to say about it.'_

The door opened to their compartment and there was a tense pause as Lily Evans stood there with a forced blank expression on her face. Her emerald eyes could scorch skin or so Hermione thought when said gaze landed on her first and then moved to James. "Could I have a word with you? Privately?" James seemed to know exactly where this was going so he stood and followed her out and shut the door firmly behind him as a warning for Sirius to not follow.

"Well, that didn't look good." Sirius sighed and leaned back with his hands behind his head, kicking his feet up where James had just vacated.

"I really hope she has enough common sense and love for him to know that he does not think about me that way. I was lost and confused and he was my only anchor from completely flying off last night." Hermione sighed and looked back down at her journal the lines had started to blur. She didn't quite understand why until a tear hit the page.

"Yes, he hasn't thought about you in that way for a few years now but that hasn't stopped you from loving him though and Lily knows that." Remus' golden gaze locked with hers as her eyes widened in shock. "It's why she has always viewed you as a threat. He had to convince her that he liked her more than you before she would agree to go out with him. They have only been dating for four- almost five months now. Evans is a nice girl but even she can fall to jealousy. I would think seeing James holding you the way he did last night caused more than a few jealous thoughts to come to mind and once she sets her mind on something it's nearly impossible to change it. Reminds us of someone else we know." He pointedly looked at her and smiled softly.

Hermione looked down at her hands clasping to her self-inking quill and tried to choke back her tears. Was what he said true? It had to be because Sirius wasn't telling him to quit teasing and Remus didn't seem the type to joke about something like that. Had she really been in love with James before losing her memories? "I don't remember loving him... Maybe if I talk to Lily and explain that I will probably never remember it, or anything for that matter, she wont toss him over. I don't want to hurt him by making her leave him for no reason."

Sirius put an arm around her shaking shoulders and pulled her into his side. "You can try to reason with her if you really feel the need to but I think it may be too late for that. We'll have to wait and see what Prongs has to say when he gets back."

With James' return in mind, Hermione wiped her tears away and cleared her throat while relaxing into the half embrace that was so Sirius Black. She let her eyes close and let her mind wander.

 _'Flashes of red and green light bounced off the shelves around her as curses whizzed by her head. 'Hermione!' A boy with red hair, covered in dirt and blood shouted her name.'_ She shot up, leaning forward with her hands clutching her head. The pain was more intense than ever before. "Run..."

"Mia? What is it?" Remus slid to his knees in front of her and let her rest her head on his shoulder while he rubbed her back soothingly. The smell of evergreen trees and chocolate that clung to him calmed her more than anything else at that moment could.

"A giant room full of shelves. Curses were flying everywhere and a boy was shouting my name. Red hair, brown eyes... He looked so familiar and it all seemed so real. That didn't actually happen, did it?" She felt her hand moving over the pages in her journal and moved back to look down at it. She was sketching a door. The door knob was located in the center and had three overlapping letters on it. "DoM... What could that mean? Do either of you know this-where this is?"

Before anyone could answer, a forlorn looking James walked back into the compartment and shut the door behind him softly. "Well, looks like I'm going stag once again this year with the rest of you sorry sods..." He noticed the tense atmosphere and stopped. "What did I miss?"

"I had another memory or vision. I don't know what they are at this point. Do you know what this is?" She held up her journal.

James frowned and adjusted his glasses on his nose while he nudged Sirius' feet from his spot on the bench. He took the journal and looked it over a bit before answering. "I've seen that when I went to the Ministry with my father. It's the door that leads to the Department of Mysteries. When were you there, Mia? As far as we knew, you had never visited the Ministry before let alone been in there deep enough to see this place." He handed her back her journal while making himself comfortable once again. Remus sat back on the bench as well, digging through a small bag at his side.

Shaking her head, Hermione reclaimed her journal and sighed. "I haven't the slightest idea, James. Honestly, I'm starting to get scared. No memories but visions of battles that I shouldn't have been in and people no one else seems to know... Nothing is making sense."

Trying to lighten the mood once more, Remus tapped the tip of her nose with a wrapped chocolate bar softly before offering it to her with a smile. "Chocolate always makes it better. That and no matter what is happening, you know we will always be here for you. Marauders until the end." With reassurance like that, Hermione couldn't help but smile.

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Oh, the gossip mill was having a field day the first week term was back in session. Between rumors of Lily Evans dumping James and Hermione's memory loss, the Marauders were all having an off start to the school year. Girls from all houses where throwing themselves at James which had Sirius chasing his tail trying to redirect them and Remus had to growl more than once at a couple of boys who tried to convince Hermione that they had been dating the year before.

"The nerve of those three. As if you would date a Slytherin. Bloody mental." Sirius rolled his eyes, as he walked with Hermione and Remus to Advanced Potions. "You would date me before any of those sods and we all know you would never go for a ladies man like me." He winked at her and Hermione couldn't help but smile.

"I don't know. You are rather dashing." She giggled and winked back at him, playing along.

The look on Sirius' face was well worth it. His jaw dropped open and he had completely froze in the hall in shock. Looking completely taken aback for all of five seconds, Sirius quickly caught back up before teasing. "Oh, how you wound me, dear Mia! Tempting me with such sweet sweet words but never to truly be mine." While speaking in dramatic prose, falling to one knee once they reached the classroom door and taking her hand. "Say from thine heavenly lips that it is not a falsehood and that I may yet have a chance to win your fair heart."

Remus just rolled his eyes with a smile and entered the classroom. Not able to contain her laughter, Hermione took her hand back and slapped Sirius' shoulder. "Get up, you silly prat. The last thing we need is another rumor going around about how you and I have become an item. That one would be going around for ages and I for one do not want to listen to it every meal. We have enough on our plates as it is." She helped him to his feet. "Not only that, but you have a class to get to if I don't recall... Off you pop. I don't want to hear later on that you never made it to Herbology."

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And as if by divine intervention, or rather one gossiping ninny who just so happened to see Sirius' ridiculous display, the rumor mill had a new juicy tale for the Marauders come lunchtime. Everyone was talking about how Sirius had dramatically asked Hermione to go out with him. Others were saying he had proposed. Hermione raked her hands through her uncontrollable curls and tried to take a deep breath so she didn't hex the next person she heard make some sort of comment or speculation about said "relationship".

Sirius, wisely kept his mouth shut and his eyes downcast towards his plate while Remus was trying in vain to not smile as he looked between the two while eating his sandwich. He also knew it was in his best interest to keep his comments to himself when the fiery witch was in this state. The last person who had angered her to this point had been covered in boils for a week.

"So..." James slid into the empty spot on the bench next to her and started to dish himself up. He kept his eyes trained on his plate and never once glanced up at her in the meantime, trying to keep his face and voice unreadable. "Is it true?"

Sirius and Remus tensed, waiting for the explosion of hexs and the angry rant that was sure to come out of the volatile witch... But nothing happened besides a long sigh as she turned to face him. "Do you really think I would ever date Sirius, James? Honestly? I know my memories are missing but I think I'm smart enough to figure out that he loves me like a sister and dating him would just be wrong on so many levels."

"Good then." Finally raising his gaze to meet hers, James did something no one in the great hall expected, least of all Hermione. He leaned forward and pecked her lips. The kiss was brief but the impact was beyond massive. Hermione was in complete shock while the other Marauders got over it quickly and exchanged smiles. James turned back to his lunch like nothing had happened. "That should take care of that rumor then. Wouldn't want them to have the wrong idea about you two."

Pain assaulted her chest and head, Hermione could not continue to sit there so she rose quickly and left the great hall. It was all a ruse, a means to end the rumor and nothing more. _'Then why does it feel like my heart is breaking?'_ She walked with no destination in mind and didn't pay attention or stop when James chased after her calling her name.

"Mia, will you slow down for a minute?" He caught her hand in the court yard and forced her to turn to face him. "What's gotten into you? Why did you leave?"

"Do _NOT_ toy with me, James Potter. According to what I've been told, you know exactly what that would mean to me. I didn't understand that I would still be affected even without my memories. I thought if I couldn't remember, I wouldn't feel it. I was wrong." She felt the tears slowly fall down her cheeks as she pulled her hand out of his grasp. "Not only did it hurt me but I'm pretty sure this will hurt Lily also. You may have ruined any chance you had at convincing her to give you another go. Or did the rumor bother you that much that you couldn't-"

He stopped Hermione's rant the only way he could think of at the moment. James captured her lips once more in a kiss, tangling his fingers in her hair behind her neck. This wasn't the innocent peck he had given her in the great hall. This was a passionate claim as his soft lips caressed hers and it ended far too soon but James felt the need to explain before she regained enough sense to start accusing him again. "I never have and never will toy with you in that way, Hermione. I have always known that you loved me. I even thought about asking you out in fourth year. I let my fear of losing you not only in that way but also as a friend get in my way. I kept my mouth shut about my feelings and turned to Lily to fill the void you left behind unknowingly. I could have been happy with Lily, content more like, but she isn't you. I realized that when I thought I was losing you that night. When you looked at me so afraid and lost, fighting to leave me- us behind. I wont say that your memory loss doesn't hurt, all those years of us just suddenly gone, but we can make new memories while trying to help you get those that you lost back."

Sighing, James rest his forehead against hers. "I know this is awkward and it's going to seem to everyone like I left Lily for you but that isn't what this is. If you still want to give this a shot, I would love to take you on a date to Hogsmeade. Maybe be my date for the Halloween Ball?"

Feeling like her heart was going to explode, Hermione could only throw caution to the wind and follow what her feelings told her was right. "I would love to."

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AN: I hope you all enjoyed chapter two. Please review and tell me what you think so far and remember to favorite/follow so you know when the next update comes in. Thank you!

~EvieHana


	3. Chapter 3

AN: You just can't seem to get rid of me today. Thank you so much for the faves/follows as well. The support is amazing and my muse is just absolutely beside herself and pestering me to write another chapter. I have to admit that it has been a few years since I posted any work for the public but with your encouragement I can see myself posting regularly and expanding to other stories. Thank you so much. Please enjoy.

Sakura2m: Yes, brace yourself for a rather confusing and dramatic ride. Things are about to get very interesting. LoL Peter will show up eventually but not just yet. Thank you so much for both your lovely reviews. It warmed my heart and this next chapter is for you.

Guest: Thank you. I'm glad you love it. I'm working very hard to keep it interesting and not fall into a cliche or niche.

 **Disclaimer: Not mine. I would be rolling in money if it was. LoL**

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Honestly, Hermione had braced herself for excessive backlash when news spread and was confirmed that she was dating James Potter... She was very happy to be disappointed that no one really seemed to care, besides Lily Evans that is. If the constant burning from her gaze wasn't enough of a hint the way she stormed from the classroom, great hall or any other room they seemed to end up in together would clue in anyone.

James kept telling her that she didn't need to worry about it and just focus on her studies as the first month back at school seemed to fly by. This weekend was the first Hogsmeade weekend and they planned to go together as a first date. It was just Hogsmeade but she still found herself getting jittery nerves the closer it came. She was sitting in the library having just finished her assignments for the week and pulled her journal out of her bag to make an entry to get some of her thoughts out of her head.

 _'October 7th, 1977_

 _Today is Friday and tomorrow is the first trip to Hogsmeade. I am going with James as promised and I can't help but find myself nervous. I don't know why but I just am. We haven't done anything more than hand holding and the occasional snog but he is such a gentleman that he hasn't pressed for more. Never thought that word would come to mind when writing about James Potter._

 _Sirius sent word back to Fleamont and Euphemia of my relationship with James and they didn't seem in the least surprised. Rather, they were ecstatic and wanted to know when the wedding planning was going to start. I have never seen James turn so white so fast. I reassured him that baby steps are in order and that I would remind his parents of that in my next letter. They sent us a wizard camera to use and told us they fully expect us to send them pictures of our adventures this year. I already had to warn Sirius that if I saw that camera going anywhere inappropriate I would would curse him so horribly his usefulness to women would be permanently damaged. To say he hasn't touched the camera since is an understatement. He wont get within five feet of it._

 _I plan to stop off at the dress shop and see how my gown for the ball is coming along. I thought this year was going to be like the last, sans James seeing how he and Lily had become an item at the end of last year. From what the boys told me, we all went to the ball together but stag which seems odd but then again we are the Marauders so when do we ever seem normal. I can hear Sirius saying "Never conform!" in my head right now just at the thought. I pushed Sirius to ask Marlene McKinnon since she fancies him and it seems as though even Remus has managed to find a date. Emmeline Vance cornered him and asked him in a roundabout way if he would go with her._

 _My memories/visions/whatever they are seemed to have about stalled and left me. I fear I may never get my lost time back but my boys seem all to happy to help me fill the void with new memories._

 _I wish-'_

Everything went dark when someone put their hands over her eyes and Hermione gasped and dropped her quill. After the initial surprise wore off, she couldn't help but smile. Leather, cut grass and a faint trace of cinnamon. She only knew one person who smelled like that and her happiness was obvious in her voice. "One of these days you are going to do that and I will hex you before I realize it's you, you know." (1)

"As long as you make it better after." James whispered in her ear before lowering his hands and kissing her cheek and taking the seat next to her. "What are you working on, love?"

"Nothing, I've finished all my assignments for the weekend. I was just writing in my journal to use up some time until you were done with practice. Have you picked who you will be promoting to captain when you leave?" Hermione knew James was feeling conflicted about who to put in the lead of the Quidditch team when he left. The year had just started but he seemed determined to worry about it anyway.

He groaned and let his head fall softly onto her shoulder. "No, Sirius and I will be leaving and it doesn't seem like anyone is taking replacing us seriously. I wish just one of them would step up and actually act like they would want the job."

The bell rang for dinner and Hermione quickly packed up her things. "You'll figure it out, James. Give it some time. Right now all we have to worry about is getting to dinner before the boys eat all the trifle."

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The wind was blowing lightly when Hermione ventured outside into the court yard to meet the boys for Hogsmeade. They had all agreed to walk down together before going separate ways. James lit up when he caught sight of her and he couldn't help but pick her up and swing her around before dropping a light kiss on her lips. Unknown to the both of them, Remus had filmed it all with the magical camera. (2)

"Good morning." Hermione smiled up at James when he finally lowered her feet to the ground. "Good morning, Sirius. Remus... Is that the-"

"Yes, it is and yes, you will definitely be hearing about that later from Uncle Fleamont and Aunt Euphie." Remus grinned and quickly put the camera away.

Shaking her head, Hermione smiled and clasped James' hand in hers. "Ready?"

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After all their shopping was finished, James took Herminone out for lunch and then they walked sedately around Hogsmeade hand-in-hand. Something had been weighing on her mind for a while now and she mustered the courage to ask him about it. "James... I'm different now. With my memories gone and no real hope of ever getting them back, I'm not really the same girl you fell in love with. Do..." She was getting exasperated with herself since she was failing to put her thoughts into words.

"You want to know if I love you less now because you aren't the same as you used to be." James stopped them and took both her hands in his and smiled down at her. "Yes, some things may be a little different but you are still the girl I fell in love with all those years ago. You seem to have less of a filter on the things you say and be a tad bit more sarcastic of late but other than that it is all still the same you. Your brilliant brain and just as radiant soul is still in there. Nothing is ever going to change that."

Not knowing whether to laugh or cry, Hermione just settled for standing on her tip toes to lay a gentle kiss on his lips. She didn't know what she ever did to deserve someone like James but she was glad that he still wanted her and he was hers.

They were too wrapped up in their moment to notice a masked dark figure under a tree not far from them. Never seeing the man raise his wand, they were both shocked when Hermione was hit by a green light from behind. Her eyes fell shut and everything went dark.

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The room was dark and that was the last thing Hermione could remember. Darkness. She slowly sat up, realizing she was in her bed at Clayborne Manor... _'This isn't right. I was just at Hogsmeade with James. Why am I here?'_ Rather than panic, she slowly got out of bed and reached for her wand, finding it on the beside table. She slowly and quietly made her way downstairs and looked around to see if anyone was still awake. Seeing no one, she walked into the sitting room and sat on the couch and picked up the newspaper Fleamont must have left on the coffee table and Hermione completely froze. The date in the corner read 'August 31st, 1977'.

 _'That can't be...'_ She was in complete shock until she heard a door close upstairs and steps on the staircase. She shot to her feet and rushed back to the hall and looked up to see James making his way downstairs just as she remembered seeing him when she first lost her memories. Same pajamas, same everything.

"Mia, what are you doing out of bed? You shouldn't be up yet!" He rushed to her side and took her hand.

"But I- you... James, what day is it?" She didn't want to be right. She didn't want it to have all gone away. _'Please, tell me I'm wrong.'_

"It's August 31st. We leave for Hogwarts tomorrow. Are you feeling all right? That quaffle really did a number on you. I swear it wasn't intentional." James tried to reassure her but Hermione seemed to get more upset with each word he said until she was all out crying. He had never seen her like this and it left him completely baffled.

"What the hell is going on out here? Mia, are you alright, love? The mediwitch said you weren't supposed to be up and about yet. Said between the knock to your head and the potion she gave you, you would be asleep at least until she came back in the morning." Sirius made his way down the stairs quickly and pulled Hermione gently into his arms. He made soothing noises near her ear and rubbed his hands along her back trying to comfort her.

Lily also appeared beside them and clasped James hand, entwining their fingers, sending him a questioning look to silently ask what had happened. He couldn't do anything but shrug and looked just as confused as she did.

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AN: Let the real fun begin. Yes, I promise there is a plot mixed in here with all the sappy doe eyes that will be sent at everyone in this story. I know it was a bit of filler in the beginning of this chapter but I wanted the plot twist to be at the end of the chapter rather than the beginning after the last chapter ran a bit long. Please remember to review to let me know your thoughts. Also make sure to favorite/follow so you know when I post updates. Thank you again for reading.

~EvieHana

1: a few of the things Hermione said she could smell from the Amortenia potion. I just played with it a bit.

2: the moving picture of James and Lily shown to Harry but instead Hermione is in Lily's place.


	4. Chapter 4

AN: And we're moving on. Thank you, once again, for your faves/follows.

Sakura2m: Thank you so much for your review. I absolutely love hearing from you. The man in the mask will stay a mystery for quite a while. If you happen to figure it out be sure to let me know. Brace yourself for more sugary goodness with a heavy dose of "wtf is going on". LoL

 **Nothing is mine. I just like to play with the characters every now and then.**

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Lily Evans was in their compartment, almost sitting in James' lap, but strangely Hermione couldn't find it in her to care. One would think she would be completely beside herself and inconsolable in heartbreak. She should be grieving his loss seeing how she remembered being just that close to James herself yesterday. _'But then it wasn't yesterday. That day is over a month from now and I'm trapped reliving it but it's all slightly skewed.'_ For instance, every time Sirius tried to start up a conversation with her, either James or Remus would look at him and he would suddenly halt and go silent again.

After the fourth time they did that, Hermione had grown weary of the game. "Alright, out with it. What are you guys not telling me? I know my memory is limited but I'm not an idiot." She continued to glare at each young man in turn, waiting for someone to crack. They all looked at each other sheepishly.

Lily stifled a giggle behind her fingertips before clearing her throat. "James, would you and the boys be ever so kind to go get some snacks from the trolly? I find myself wanting a sugar quill."

They dove on the excuse to leave and the boys were out of the compartment before they could say 'quidditch'. Hermione dropped the glare with a sigh. "Lily, I can't take another moment of them tip toeing around me and keeping secrets. Things have been awkward enough as it is and I have no idea why! Please tell me you sent them away so you could fill me in or I just may go mad."

The redhead smiled and nodded. "Yes, yes, I sent them away so I could talk to you. You don't remember anything from yesterday before the quaffle hit you?" Her hands fidgeted slightly in her lap.

"Not a thing. I remember very little of my life and everything from yesterday before I woke up in the middle of the night is completely gone. What happened yesterday that they are all afraid to tell me?" Feeling slightly put out, Hermione crossed her arms over her chest and waited for an explanation.

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 _Lily and Hermione were playing chess while James and Sirius flew around the back yard on their brooms, passing a quaffle between them. It was Lily's turn and she was trying in vain to figure out how to stop her inevitable loss. "Soooo, how has the summer been? I was quite shocked when you wrote to me that Sirius was here extremely early and on a permanent basis from now on. Do you know what happened?" She moved a rook and Hermione quickly claimed it with a knight._

 _"Yes, his mother is a bloody idiot and tried to convince him that a good son does what he is told and then demanded he take the dark mark. When he refused, she used an unforgivable on him to try to force him. If I ever get within ten feet of that woman, she will pay dearly." Hermione's eyes flashed in anger before she flicked her gaze up to the boys and her demeanor softened. "His family doesn't deserve him. I'm glad Sirius left them. He was hiding a lot of the abuse from James and Remus... But he couldn't hide it from me. I could always see how the summers home affected him."_

 _"Sounds to me like Mr Black may need to watch out for his virtue." Lily winked at her as she made another useless move, not really focused on the game anymore._

 _"Tsk, hardly. He would never be interested in someone like me. I hear Marlene is going to go all out to get his attention this year. She is more his type." Hermione tried to beat back her blush into submission but settled for taking Lily's queen instead._

 _"Saying Sirius would never be interested in someone like you doesn't mean that you do not see him in that way, Mia. When are you going to be honest with yourself and him? Doesn't he deserve to know and make that choice as well?" She completely ignored the board and propped her chin up on her bridged hands._

 _"Lily, I am not one to throw myself at the boys I like. That may be all well and good for other girls but I'm smart enough to know when the odds are not in my favor. I will just be happy for my friends when they all pair off seeing how that has already started." Hermione smiled. "James hasn't stopped talking about all his plans to take you out this year. He wants to make up for lost time so be warned. I don't doubt he will attach himself to you at the hip here shortly." Just then, James flew over their table and dropped a daisy in front of Lily before flying off. "Speak of the devil."_

 _Tucking the flower into her hair behind her ear, Lily laughed and watched the boys fly for a while, passing a quaffle between them in a lazy manner now. "Actually, I think I may interrupt them for a moment. Excuse me." She made her way to them and waited for them to descend. "Hello, my love." She stood on tiptoe to give James a light peck on the lips before covertly looking at Sirius. "I swear, Sirius Black, if you do not get over there and tell her how you feel, I will hex you within an inch of your life. She is completely smitten with you and plans to let McKinnon sink her claws into you this year. If you want to avoid that, now would be your best shot."_

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"Sirius listened to me for once and left to talk to you while I stayed with James to give you both a bit of privacy. I wasn't close enough to hear anything but after a minute or so of you two talking, he picked you up and snogged you for the world to see. It was rather sweet but James, being the over protective older brother, threw the quaffle with the intent of hitting Sirius in the middle of his back. He didn't expect him to turn with you still in his arms." Lily sighed and smoothed her palms down her jean clad thighs. "To say he felt guilty is an understatement. It took me hours to calm James down. He refused potions from the mediwitch just in case you needed anything and we were really surprised when we heard you leave your room. After we got you calm and tucked back into bed, we had a meeting in James' room and his guilt doubled. He feels awful for being the reason you lost your memories. Sirius didn't want to push his feelings on you when you don't remember starting a relationship with him. I think it has left them all slightly confused on how to approach you."

Hermione sat in shock for a few moments before asking incredulously. "I'm dating Sirius Black?" _'I would have died! I would have died rather than betray my friends!'_ Gasping, Hermione clutched her head as pain assaulted her. She had seen the inside of a house in complete shambles and disrepair before the memory vanished, leaving only the pain in her head behind.

The compartment door was flung open and Sirius was instantly on his knees in front of Hermione, trying to check her over. "What is it, Mia? What happened?"

"Memory, vision, don't know which. My brain feels like I have shrapnel in it." Herminone choked out.

Thinking fast, Lily pulled a vial out of her small bag beside her and offered it to her friend. "It's a mild pain potion. Brewed it myself."

"Thank you." Taking it quickly, Hermione sighed and let her head fall back against the backrest. "I'm okay. Not the first time that's happened. They come and go." She sat back up and smiled softly at the young man still kneeling before her. "So, when exactly did you guys get back to the door?"

"We never left" Remus replied bluntly with a small smile on his lips. James lightly punched his shoulder, signalling that he obviously wasn't supposed to admit that.

Quirking a brow, Hermione's whiskey colored eyes never left Sirius. "And when were you going to tell me that we had started dating yesterday?"

Looking slightly forlorn, Sirius fidgeted under her gaze. "I didn't want to pressure you. I was going to tell you eventually but I wanted to be sure that you wanted this for yourself, not just for my sake. I completely understand if you want to put things on hold and I will promise to wait for your say so. I just-"

With a smile, Hermione silenced him with a kiss.

"I do believe that is her 'say so'." Lily and the others laughed.

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The stares where starting to get to her. Hermione was trying her best to stay out of the "Sirius Black Fan Club"s way but the constant burning on the back of her neck had her on edge. And then the incidents started happening. Herminone and Lily came back to their dorm room to discover all of Hermione's personal effects thrown about the room, her inkwells dumped on her bed. Three days later, her clothing and towel was taken while she was in the shower. She was forced to sit in the bathroom naked until Lily came looking for her. It was later that week when she was walking to Advanced Potions that a stinging hex hit the right side of her face. Having had enough, Hermione turned to face her attacker and was shocked to see Marlene McKinnon standing a few yards from her with her wand in her hand.

"Are you finished? I have taken these punishments from you and your sad little group for the last week and I wont continue to do it any longer. This ends now or we will be called into the headmasters office." Without waiting for an answer, Hermione turned on her heel and made it to class just before the bell. Professor Slughorn took one look at her face and asked a very angry and concerned Lily to take her to the hospital wing. "Who was it?" The redhead asked as they made the long walk together.

"McKinnon. I think her and her clan of harpies will lay off now. I threatened to take this to the headmaster if it continues. If she's smart, she will call them off and leave me alone." Her right cheek was burning and swelling. Hermione linked her arm with Lily. "I don't want him to know... Sirius and the boys already suspect that something is wrong but if they find out that girls are trying to bully me into breaking up with Sirius... I honestly don't know what they will do. I want this year to be a good one. They have finally settled down and focused on finishing school rather than pranking."

Sighing, Lily had to see it from her point of view. "Yes, I noticed that too and you are probably right. I don't know what they would do either if they were to find out what half the girls in our house were up to. I will keep this between us on the condition that if it does continue, you keep to your threat and you go to the headmaster. Deal?"

"Deal."

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AN: Thank you so much for reading. If you are new to my story, be sure to favorite/follow my story so you will know when I update. Please be sure to drop me a review with your thoughts or critiques if you have the time. I would love to hear from you. Until next time!

~EvieHana


	5. Chapter 5

AN: Thank you to my two guest reviewers. I know a lot of you are confused right now. If you really want spoilers, you can private message me or watch the anime "Amnesia" that inspired this story. It wont be exact, obviously, but it could drop a few hints as to what is in the works.

Shola2001: I do too. I had originally planned to make this a present time fic and not one in the past. The deciding factor was of course my love for the Marauder time period. I just couldn't help myself. Maybe I'll find a way to do both.

Sakura2m: That's hard to answer without giving it all away. LoL With all the confusion, I'm going to reorder some things so you have more explanations in the next couple of chapters. I wouldn't want anyone to stop reading because all of this seems random. I can reassure you that its not and everything does actually have a purpose.

 **I wish it was mine but it's not. *pout***

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Flashes of people and places assaulted her dreams. Hermione moaned in her sleep as she rolled onto her side, clutching at her pillow.

 _She was on the back of a massive albino dragon. "We have to jump... Now!" The drop was so far but her scream was frozen in her lungs the instant she hit the fridgid water below. The black dress she was wearing kept her under the surface but she didn't give up. She needed air._

"Hermione, wake up." Lily sat beside her thrashing friend and tried to wake her softly but then the curly haired witch seemed to struggle to breathe and even she started to panic. "Hermione!"

 _She was still under water struggling to get to the surface when a man in dark robes and a mask appeared completely unaffected by the water in front of her. He gripped her face harshly between his gloved hands before hissing, "No matter where you go, I will find you. You are_ mine _!"_

Hermione shot up in her dorm bed, clutching her head as her fear overwhelmed her. "No! Get out of my head!"

"Hermione, your nose..." Lily pulled a handkerchief from her bedside table and pressed it to the other girls bleeding nose. "We have to take you to the headmaster."

"I think you're right. That dream wasn't normal." Holding the bit of cloth to her nose, Hermione stood and they slowly made their way to the headmasters stairwell. The griffin had already stepped aside before they even got there so she knocked lightly on the door and was instantly invited in. It seemed as though the headmaster really did see everything in Hogwarts.

Headmaster Dumbledore and two redheaded men in auror robes were waiting. Hermione took one look at the twins and smiled. "Weasleys..."

"Not quite, love, though our sister is married to a Weasley." The one to the left spoke first.

"Fabian and Gideon Prewett at your service." Said the one to the right while they both bowed and smiled.

Dumbledore smiled and shook his head before turning his twinkling gaze to the girls. "What can I do for you, ladies? It is quite late."

"I have reason to believe someone is tampering with my mind, Professor. I was having a normal dream, well, normal for the kind I seem to be having since my accident over the summer. Then there was a man in black robes and a silver mask in my dream and it was like what was happening in the dream didn't affect him. It felt like someone was poking around in my head looking for something and it didn't go away when I woke up." Hermione didn't like the shocked looks on everyone's faces in the room right now.

It took only a moment before the headmaster composed himself. "Come here, my dear. I want you to look into my eyes and try to keep from thinking of anything."

Doing as he said, Hermione gasped when she felt the headmaster enter her mind. Flashes of the other timeline and of her nightmares flickered before her eyes until she saw her most recent nightmare with the masked man in it. Suddenly, the headmaster was evicted from her mind and her nose began to bleed once again. All the twinkle left the Dumbledore's eyes and he became rather guarded and pensive. "Fabian, if you would be so kind as to escort Ms Evans back to the tower..."

Lily looked like she was going to protest but Hermione just shook her head and waved her off as she wiped at her nose again. "I'll be okay. Promise."

"Have a seat, my dear." He waited until Lily and Fabian left and Hermione to seat herself on the other side of his desk before continuing. "I honestly don't know where to begin, Ms Granger. Between time travel, alternate realities and being the target of a death eater, I don't see how you have room for anything else but you somehow managed to throw a love interest and jealous school girls into the cauldron as well. I take it you do not know why this dark wizard has targeted you?"

"Not in the slightest, headmaster. I have been trying to piece it together but with so few fractured memories, the visions and nightmares, I've been finding it hard to distinguish what is real and what isn't."

Dumbledore nodded and bridged his hands before him. "I do believe it is all in a sense 'real' but simply does not apply to this timeline. Many people believe that time is straight and can not be changed or altered. It is more of a web or fabric if you will. It has many points where it starts, separates off only to meet again somewhere else. That's why things seem so similar to your last episode but have slight differences, like Mr Potter and Mr Black. One slight change, like who actually threw that quaffle, can make all the difference." He paused for a moment. "As to the matter of the dark wizard, I believe he has something to do with all of this and is most likely the reason you are here. We will have to work on your natural shields to try to keep him at bay and out of your mind."

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 _'September 23rd, 1977_

 _As suggested by the headmaster, I was given a schedule to start over the weekend in secret. Supposedly, there is a student who has a natural talent for Occlumency and he along with the headmaster will be tutoring me to safeguard my mind against further attacks and compulsions. Lily, of course, grilled me the instant I made it back to the dorm. I told her and the boys what I could, that my mind was under attack and we didn't know why but that I was going to get help. I haven't told anyone about the confusing time nonsense. I'm feeling very isolated and I think it's starting to show._

 _Sirius has been trying to get me to talk to him about my nightmares but I don't want to worry him or anyone else for that matter. Thankfully, McKinnon and her team of bullies seem to have taken the hint and have left me alone. One less thing to worry about. I just need to-'_

"Ahh!" Hermione let out a surprised squeak when her chair was suddenly tipped back away from the library table, a smiling upside down Sirius Black the culprit. "Hi."

"Hello, my love." He bent and gave her a light peck on the lips before letting her chair right itself with his controlled assistance so the front legs didn't slam back to the floor. Taking a seat next to her, Sirius pouted a little for show. "I feel like I've hardly been able to spend any time with you recently. You aren't avoiding me, are you?"

Closing her journal and packing her bag back up, Hermione smiled at him indulgently. "No, I haven't been avoiding you. I've just been rather busy is all and so have you. Between my extra tutoring starting and your quidditch practice on top of normal classes, I can hazard a guess that our time is going to dwindle to very little time together. However, I promise that I will try to spend as much time with you as possible. It may not be much but we will find a way. That is... if you still want me to..." She dropped her eyes to her hands nervously.

"Of course, Mia. I'm not giving up on us." His hand gently on her cheek had her meeting his sincere gray eyes. "Don't give up on me just yet."

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Bursting into the room, panting for breath, Hermione starting apologizing profusely for being late but her voice suddenly caught in her throat seeing who the mystery student that had the natural talent was. _'Tell me, are you incapable of restraining yourself, or do you take pride in being an insufferable know-it-all?'_ She pushed her hand against the side of her head as an ice pick of pain shot through her temple. _'Turn to page 394.'_

Hermione would have fallen to her knees under the onslaught if it wasn't for the young man catching her and carefully depositing her into a chair. "I'm assuming this is the girl we spoke about, Headmaster?" The smooth voice of Severus Snape, the Marauder's arch nemesis, echoed in her mind and in her ears, leaving her completely confused. She had only heard one voice that sounded vaguely familiar in her visions but there was no mistaking his voice for any other. "Is there a reason you didn't tell me it was this specific girl?" A deaf man could have heard the disdain dripping from his words.

"Ah, Severus, my boy, I knew better. Had I mentioned her name, I knew you wouldn't have shown." Dumbledore's blue eyes twinkled at them both. "Seeing as how introductions do not need to be made, Ms Granger, would you care to share what occurred in your vision this time?"

Clearing her throat, refusing to take her eyes off the Slytherin who obviously didn't want to be there, Hermione reluctantly asked, "Um, Headmaster, how much does Snape know... exactly?"

Raising a dark brow in an uninterested manner, Snape answered her himself. "You have been bouncing between different universes along a specific timeline and being targeted by a dark wizard/supposed death eater and need to learn to shield your mind from further manipulation... Does that cover it all? If so, would you please be so kind as to tell us what you saw this time so we can hurry this along? I do have other things to do besides listen to you prattle on about your problems."

Resisting the urge to give him the what-for, Hermione let his comments slide and instead focused on the task at hand. "I didn't see anything but rather it was a voice. Yours, Snape, to be precise. I don't think it is anything you have ever said to me in this current timeline. You sounded... Older, like you were lecturing me. A professor possibly. Does 'page 394' mean anything to you?"

Seeing the Slytherin instantly stiffen, it was now Hermione's turn to quirk a brow in question. "I take it you don't remember that your boyfriend almost fed me to your little pet wolf Lupin? Page 394 in the Defense Against the Dark Arts textbook starts the chapter on-"

"Werewolves." They said together. Snape nodded and straightened his oxford shirt needlessly.

"No, I can honestly say that I didn't remember that incident and I'm sorry it seems to have left a mark on you. I know there is a lot of bad blood between you and the boys but that is neither here nor there. I have no memory of any animosity between us and I do need your help. I understand if you still want to refuse and you are free to walk out that door any time. So, I am asking you with full knowledge of who you are working with, will you help me?" Hermione offered Severus her hand and waited with baited breath for his answer.

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AN: And there you have it. It is not a fully realized explanation yet so expect some changes but that should help a little with the confusion... I hope. I'm excited to see how many of you are happy with the newest additions to the story as well. As always, please remember to favorite/follow if you are just now tuning in and want to be notified when I update. Please send me feedback because I very much want to know if you are enjoying this story and like where it is heading. Thank you for reading and I hope to see you shortly.

~EvieHana


	6. Chapter 6

AN: I can't thank you enough for the favorites/follows I have gotten in the last couple of days. Thank you so much for sticking with me. I'm sorry I didn't post yesterday. Between car troubles and my four children, there just was not enough time. LoL Hope you enjoy this next chapter. I wanted to do something a little different with it so please make sure to leave me a review with your thoughts.

Sakura2m: I know right? Every time I hear or read a Snape quote, it's always his voice I hear in my head. Last year was the worst time to be pregnant. I cried almost continuously every time I got on fb because I would find out another one of my heroes had passed. I named my daughter Leia. She was going to be named Alan if she was a boy. As for the story, yes, Dumbledore and Snape will now be permanent fixtures. Can't tell you who it is yet but I can tell you that it isn't someone who has been named in the story as of yet.

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Exhaustion hovered over Hermione like a dark cloud and all her friends had noticed. It had been two weeks since she had started her private lessons with Severus and Professor Dumbledore with little progress. The prodigy loved to point at the fact that they had finally found something she was not good at though it apparently wasn't her fault. Her fractured mind seemed to just welcome anyone with the ability to waltz into it to do so.

The Marauders and Lily were all in the library finishing off their assignments for the weekend seeing how the first Hogsmeade trip was tomorrow. James's excitement could hardly be contained. He had practically attacked his homework like his life depended on it. Sirius was to her right and muttering about Professor Binns and his long winded, pointless prattling as he tried to make sense of his notes and finish his History of Magic essay. Lily and Remus were at the end of the table, finishing up their DADA work.

Having nothing left herself, Hermione pulled out her journal and started to just throw thoughts onto the page to make herself look busy.

 _'October 7th, 1977_

 _I would be lying if I said I wasn't worried. No matter how much I practice, my natural shields have been completely destroyed like my memories. I have had several nightmares of the man in the mask but he hasn't spoken to me since the first time. I just get flashes of him now and then in random sections of my dreams._

 _Severus says-'_

"Severus... As in Severus Snape?" The pure fury radiating off Sirius was palpable and Hermione sighed. She had known they were going to find out but this was neither the proper time or place to start what she knew was going to turn into a screaming match. The fact that he had been snooping in her journal over her shoulder also stung.

"Not here, Sirius. Follow me." Highly agitated, she packed her bag and left the library, expecting him to follow. Sirius stomped after her but the others shared a look before remaining at the table.

They made their way to the Black Lake and she stopped under the tree they liked to study under when the weather permitted. "Now, if you would please refrain from yelling, I can explain."

"What is there to explain, Hermione? You have been having private lessons with the greasy git of the snake pit. What am I supposed to think?" He threw his hands up in the air. He paced in a short distance in front of her, refusing to look at her since that seemed to anger him more.

"For one, I don't like your tone of voice. Two, yes, I'm getting private lessons from him at Dumbledore's request. Snape is trying to help me. Three, so help me, Sirius Black, if you so much as insinuate that there is anything more than that going on between us..." Hermione's hands started to shake with her building anger. "Do you trust me?"

"I don't know if I can since you can't seem to remember that he can not be trusted!" Sirius grit out, stopping and turning his back to her.

It was like he had slapped her. All the fight went out of Hermione and tears gathered in her downcast eyes, the hurt of his words draping her small frame like a cloak. There was no talking to him in this state and, not willing to face her other friends right now, Hermione decided a walk would be a good way to clear her head. She turned on her heel and walked away from Sirius, making a slow trek around the Black Lake until she hit the point where the lake merged with the Forbidden Forest.

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Sirius returned to the castle alone and slowly made he way back to the library where his friends where still waiting. He had wanted to go after her after peeking over his shoulder at her before she left, the look on her face when she had turned away from him had nearly broken his heart but he was still too angry to talk to her rationally at the time and he knew it just as well as she did.

Everyone looked up when he reclaimed his seat and then glanced towards the door, waiting for Hermione to appear. "She is walking around the Black Lake." He supplied with a grimace.

"Alone?!" Lily didn't even wait for an answer, her disappointment in the boy clearly written all over her face. She quickly packed her bags, dropped a kiss on James cheek and left.

Remus was also packing his bag but stopped next to Sirius. "You know, I thought we had all grown up finally this year... Guess someone still needs to catch up." With that said he, followed Lily out to search for their missing friend.

"Go on, Prongs. It's your turn to call me an idiot." Sirius sighed and let his head fall onto his folded arms on the table top.

"I don't need to . You just did it for me. I will say this though, Hermione has really been trying to hide how her missing memories hurt her. On top of that, she has a death eater stalking her and attacking her mind whenever it suits him, haunting her dreams and making her worry every waking moment that he could force her to hurt someone. You want to know how I know all this? It's not because she told me. If anything, Hermione would probably rather be tortured then admit to any of it." James paused for a moment, pushing his glasses further up his nose and waiting until Sirius lifted his head enough to look at him before continuing. "It's because I can see it in her face. I can see it in how she is so cautious when she is around us. Hermione doesn't trust herself anymore to not hurt us and the only thing that kept her going was our faith and trust in her."

"But why him? And why didn't she tell us? What was the point in keeping it a secret?" Sirius was now feeling equal parts regret and anger though the latter was quickly dwindling down to nothing.

"Did it ever occur to you that maybe she knew you would react this way and didn't want to hurt your feelings? She's had to spend most of her nights in the headmaster's office with the git. I'm pretty sure she would have much rather spent them with her boyfriend and not have this problem. Her lessons with Snape were a necessity that she couldn't get away from. All of this was her trying to protect you. I've known who she was meeting from the start. I'm shocked none of you thought to look at the map yourself to see what she was up to." James started packing up his own books. "So, with that in mind, what do you plan to do about it?"

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Having exhausted her limited energy long ago, Hermione sat under a tree just within the Forbidden Forest. She had a nice view of the castle high on the hill overlooking the lake between them. She was happy to just sit there and think of nothing, letting all the pressure and stress go for just a few minutes. A snapping twig not far from her had Hermione drawing her wand slowly but she didn't show any other outward movements that anything was wrong. The hair stood up on the back of her neck and she took slow deep breaths.

"So, he finally dumped you, I take it?" A feminine voice sounded behind her and Hermione turned slowly to face Marlene McKinnon with her wand hidden in the folds of her robes. "I had planned on coming out here to convince you to leave him but it looks like he already did the job for me."

"So you followed me to just gloat instead? Well, you don't have much to gloat over since we didn't officially break up. Yes, we had a row but I wouldn't bet that he wont be taking me to Hogsmeade tomorrow. " Keeping a calm head and an almost bored air, Hermione could see the other girl getting angry. "Anyway, Sirius may be a ladies man but he never did have a taste for desperation."

"You little, bi-" A red stunner stopped the girls words as she slowly crumpled to the forest floor, revealing the man in black robes from her dreams standing only a few feet from her. Hermione's blood ran cold as she stared up into that silver mask. 'He's really here. He's real.' She willed herself to bolt, to raise her wand, to do something and no matter how much she screamed in her head for her body to function, nothing happened. His mirthless chuckle was slightly muffled behind the mask but it still had fear shooting down her spine.

"You just seem to attract trouble no matter where or when you find yourself. I shall have to keep a very close eye on you next time." He held his gloved hand out to her and Hermione found herself rising to her feet with no will of her own. Her hand released her wand, dropping it to the ground next to McKinnon, to take his hand in hers. "Don't worry, my dear. I am told that it is painless."

Feeling his wand rest against her chest, Hermione closed her eyes as a flash of green light caused her time in this world to end.

 _ **-AHL-AHL-AHL-AHL-AHL-**_

Seeing the flash of red and then green, Lily and Remus rushed through the trees, reaching the scene with their wands drawn. They got there just in time to see the man with black robes disappear in to thin air. "What- How did he do that?" Lily looked around, completely gob-smacked. Apparation and portkey always had sound and movement to it but the man had just literally vanished before their eyes indicating he had done neither.

"Oh, no... Mia!" Remus rushed forward and slid to his knees next to his friend, her body laying peacefully in sweet repose among wild roses that he knew had to have been grown there by the death eater. He almost frantically checked for a pulse, not wanting to confirm what the green flash had been. "She's..." He choked on the words. He couldn't believe that she was gone.

Lily cried silently as she checked McKinnon over. "She's just stunned. We need to call the professors out here. Aurors need to be informed that a death eater has been spotted this close to Hogwarts." She lowered herself on the other side of Hermione's body. She couldn't actually believe her friend was gone. She looked up to ask Remus how they were going to tell the others, especially Sirius, when all thoughts froze. "Oh, god... Remus?" Lily was too scared to move her eyes off the sandy blond haired boy as she backed away slowly under his feral golden gaze.

"Run!" His forceful growl had the redhead sprinting back to the castle. Thankfully, he did not give chase and merely picked up his friends body and let loose a howl that could be heard for miles. The loss of a pack-mate was a terrible thing and a loss Remus Lupin had never felt before.

 _ **-AHL-AHL-AHL-AHL-AHL-**_

AN: And that is all I have at the moment. Can you guess where the next chapter will start? LoL If you are just starting to read my story, don't forget to smash that follow/favorite button so you know when I update. Also, please please please, send me a review with your thoughts, critiques, love or hate if you have the time. I would love some feedback on how you all think this is going. Until next time.

~EvieHana


	7. Chapter 7

AN: *dodges tomatoes* I'm back! Please don't hate me for being gone so long. To be honest, one of my reviews kind of sucked my mojo dry and I face-palmed so hard my head hurt. It took me a week to even look at my inbox again after that let alone write another chapter. No joke. Anywho, this chapter is slightly longer than the others and I hope that makes it up to you all. I finally figured out how to use the horizontal line. YAY! All mistakes are my own. Enjoy.

 **Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING! I wish I did. *pout***

Sakura2m: I know. I love Moony so much and hated doing that to him but I kind of wanted to let everyone see what the actual outcome of what those flashes were. There was a lot of questions as to if she was actually dying or not and I think that was the only way to actually clear it up. I love you. You're awesome for sticking around and reviewing every chapter.

Guest Aug 8th: Please read my author notes and story more thoroughly. Much love.

Guest Aug 27th: I have most of it all mapped out. Honestly, it's the ending that I'm still questioning myself over because I kind of want to bring the story into the present day but don't know if I want to have that happen at the end of this story or write a completely different and not connected remake of this story in the HP timeline. Tempted to make a poll so you guys can vote on it. LoL

Alexa SixT: New chapter! Thank you for the love! Woot woot!

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Instinctively reaching out to the left, Hermione felt the familiar wood of her wand and picked it up off the side table as she slid out of bed. She glared at the walls of her dark room at Clayborne Manor, remembering the attack by the masked man. August 31st was becoming a massive thorn in her side and so was he, whoever he was. Instead of leaving her room like she had the previous times, Hermione turned on the lights within her room with a flick of her wrist and moved to kneel at her already packed trunk to see if there were any clues as to what her life was like in this universe.

Carefully folded weekend clothes, pristine school uniforms, quills, textbooks... Then at the bottom of the trunk she found a wooden box she had never seen before. It was made of walnut wood and covered in vine carvings much like her wand. The dimensions were that of a cigar box and trying to open it was an ordeal and a half. The lid wouldn't budge no matter how many ways or times she pulled at it. Completely perplexed, Hermione turned it over in her hands over and over looking for anything she may have missed. If it was in her trunk, then it had to be hers and she had to have a way of opening it. Nothing else made sense.

There! On the left side of the box, there was a small knot hidden among the vines that wasn't flush with the rest of the wood. A gut feeling had Hermione picking up her wand again and she lightly pressed the tip to the indentation. The lid slid open on its own to reveal parchment. She pulled a stack of what seemed to be letters out before setting the box carefully aside next to her knee and opened the first folded bit of parchment from the top of the stack.

 _August 29th, 1977_

 _My dearest,_

 _I can honestly say that I am impatient for this summer to be over and can not wait to see you once again. My father has been insufferable and I would very much like for you to kiss away my memories of him. My mother, on the other hand, has been trying to pry your identity from me all summer. She walked into my room and saw me writing my first letter to you of this summer. Apparently, I had a "love-struck smile" on my face and she hasn't let up since. While she secretly approves, I know she has to put on a front to keep father from suspecting anything is out of the ordinary._

 _Speaking of which, have you given any thought to what we had discussed before the end of last year? I'm not pressuring you, I'm just honestly curious as to your thoughts since you haven't written to me about it at all over the summer. Know that whatever you decide, I love you and we will find a way to meet in the middle._

 _Yours,_

 _Forevermore_

"Well, that raised more questions than providing answers." Hermione whispered lightly to herself, using the letter she had just read to fan her flaming cheeks. The only thing she had garnered from the letter was that she was involved with someone and they did not reside with her at Clayborne Manor. She mentally scratched Sirius and James off her list of potential suspects. Being honest with herself, Hermione was still kind of hurt remembering how things with Sirius had ended in the last world but she would not hold that against him in the here and now.

Making herself more comfortable on the floor by sitting cross-legged on her bum, Hermione moved to the next letter.

 _August 21st, 1977_

 _My dearest,_

 _I am loath to admit it but you are now officially allowed to say "I told you so". The war is going to get worse and I have received a secret letter asking for my "special talents" to help-_

A knock on her door had Hermione jumping and quickly stashing the letters back in the box they had come from. She quickly hid them back in the bottom of her trunk before calling out, "Come in." The door slowly opened to reveal James, Sirius and Lily.

"Hey, you're up. How are you feeling?" Lily smiled and quickly moved to help Hermione pack her clothes back into her trunk.

"Like I've been hit by a bludger." Hermione laughed as she locked the lid to her trunk before standing and offered a helping hand up to the red head.

Sirius found himself blushing and rubbing the back of his head with a guilty look on his face. "Quaffle, actually. I'm so sorry, Mia. I didn't mean to hit you. I was aiming at this lout." He nodded in James' direction.

"Well, you missed." She smiled softly at him before offering him a hug which he gladly took. "I forgive you but there were a few side effects. You all have to fill in some blanks for me if you can. Actually, most of it is blank... I remember who you all are and who I am for the most part but can't for the life of me remember anything else." She motioned for them to all join her on her bed. The first surprise came before anyone even spoke.

Lily comfortably wedged herself between Sirius' open legs and leaned back on him while he leaned back against the right post at the foot of her bed. He, in turn, put his arms around her waist and rest his chin on her shoulder. That could only mean one thing... Sirius Black and Lily Evans were an item in this universe. _'Well, that's new.'_

The surprises didn't stop there either. Lily wasn't placed in Gryffindor but in Hufflepuff and had been dating Sirius since their fourth year. Sirius had been adopted by the Potters during fourth year after his mother had gone insane and murdered his father, leaving him and his younger brother Regulus nowhere to go after their mother was taken to St Mungo's. The younger Black brother was staying in a room right across from hers and had been sorted into Ravenclaw. James was still captain of the the quidditch team but Sirius wasn't on the team at all and never had been, hence the terrible throw that had hit her instead of James.

"And Remus? How is he?"

Everyone stiffened and James and Sirius traded glances. It was James that answered. "We've never been all that close to Remus Lupin. You are friends with him though we are still trying to figure out how you get along with Slytherins. He and Snivellus study with you twice a week typically. Other than that, we can't really tell you much."

Hermione digested that for a moment. If what they said was true then they likely didn't know that Remus was a werewolf. Then again, she didn't know if he even was one in this universe. "Wow, I think my brain is about to implode from information overload." Hermione flipped her wrist over to glance at her watch and saw that it was nearing midnight. "And on that note, I think we had best get to bed. We have a long trip in the morning and you can tell me more on our way to Hogwarts."

* * *

It was on her way back to their compartment after changing into her uniform that Hermione ran into Remus Lupin. He looked tired and still had the light scars down his right cheek to his strong jaw. She reminded herself to act normal or as normal as she thought she would be. This was becoming steadily difficult as one universe bled into another within her mind. "Hi! It's so good to see you. I need to speak to you when you and Severus have time. When can we meet up at the library?"

"What? No hug? I see how it is. Spend the summer with your Gryffindor brothers and I'm chopped liver." Remus feigned hurt but his golden eyes smiled down at her.

Laughing, Hermione humored him and hugged Remus softly. The full moon had been on the 28th so she knew that he was still probably sore. "Never. You didn't answer me though. What day would be best? I have something big to tell you both." She backed away to look up at him again. It was impossible to look at Remus' face while hugging him, he was so tall.

"Sounds... interesting? Everything is okay though?" He looked slightly concerned.

"Yes, everything is fine. Promise. Day?"

"Like a Cerberus with a bone. We will aim for Wednesday at 7 like usual." He tugged gently on one of her loose curls. "Are you sure everything is okay, kit?"

The nickname was new. She filed that away to analyze later and reassured him by nodding. "Yes, everything is fine. I just want to talk to you both is all. I should get back before they send the cavalry. See you Wednesday!"

The compartment was quiet when she got back but it was Sirius' face more than anything that clued her in that something was a bit off. "Okay, what happened while I was gone? You look mad enough to hex a hippogriff." Hermione pointedly stared at the angry wizard.

"Severus walked by the compartment when I came back from changing. He stopped for a moment to glance in here. I think he was looking for you." Lily answered since her boyfriend seemed to be gritting his teeth into dust.

"Oh, I ran into Remus right after I had changed. We will be doing our Wednesday study group as usual this year. I will fill them in about my accident then." Hermione flipped open her Transfiguration textbook and pretended to read as her mind wandered. She wasn't going to have this conversation with Sirius while he was angry. She knew that if they got into it about who she spent her time with, they would be fighting all the way to the gates of Hogwarts.

* * *

It was finally Wednesday and Hermione had only stopped by the great hall for a quick bite before leaving to go to the library. She had only seen Remus and Severus in a few of her advanced classes but they always sat together which left her to find another partner. She smiled at them when passing them in the halls and when in the great hall but hadn't had a moment until now to talk to them. She now understood why they had to wait to talk until now. They were always so busy and they were in different houses.

Sirius had finally calmed down and they were all now back in the quick of things with classes back in session. Hermione had taken to not talking about her other friends around him. James and Lily didn't seem to care much. Well, Lily cared about Sirius' attitude and told him to behave several times that first day. James was too busy with his bird, McKinnon, to bother after they had reached their common room their first night. Keeping all the universes straight in her head was becoming a pain.

 _'I wonder if it's possible to make a book that-'_

A large tome dropped next to her elbow, pulling Hermione out of her thoughts with a jolt. She looked up and smiled at Severus as he took the empty seat next to her. "Hello, Severus! How have..." The words died on her tongue when he met her gaze. He looked so cold on the outside, his face completely blank but his dark eyes screamed of pain and insecurity.

"So, is this how it's to be then? Just pretend it never happened? " Severus paused for a moment, his eyes searching her for something but she didn't know what. The scowl on his face let her know he hadn't found what he had wanted. "I didn't know you were that good of an actress."

"Actress? Severus, I don't know what-"

"Sorry, I didn't mean to be late. So, what did I miss?" Remus quickly took his seat across from them before noticing the tension between the his two friends. "Um... Should I find something to do for a few minutes?"

"No, it's fine, Remus. I think what I have to say will clear a few things up and you should be here to hear it." Hermione sighed and explained the short and safe version of what had happened, only mentioning the quaffle accident and memory loss. She even left out who had thrown it seeing how there was a temperamental truce in effect between her Slytherin and Gryffindor friends. "So, if I seem off or don't know something that I should, please have patience with me and just let me know. The others didn't know much about you besides the fact that we study together and what little I can remember about you two."

"What do you remember about me, kit?" Remus had a concerned frown on his face and she immediately knew what he was worried about.

"I know all about your FMS. No worries there. How was the 28th by the way?" She smiled softly at him.

"FMS?" Remus turned his head slightly to the side, raising an eyebrow.

"Full Moon Syndrome. Don't change the subject."

That made both young men chuckle before Remus answered, making sure to keep his voice down. "It was okay considering you guys couldn't be there. My father had to reinforce the bars in the basement. I grew a bit over the summer and he was worried that the extra height and weight would cause a breakout."

"I'm glad you are okay. I'll make it up to you with chocolate as soon as we can go to Hogsmeade." She smiled at him before turning to Severus. "So, about our conversation before Remus got here-"

"I'll go find that book..." Remus quickly stood and vanished into the stacks.

"What has him-"

"We're engaged." Severus cut her off, his smooth voice did nothing to balm the impact those words made on her psyche. "Or rather we would be if you had given me a definite answer at the end of last year. I proposed under our tree by the Black Lake and asked you to move in with me after we finished school. You wanted to think about it seeing how the war has started to heat up." He could tell by the complete awestruck look upon her blushing face that all of this was new to her so he continued. "Remus and I have both been approached by dark wizards over the summer. They are recruiting and offering us anything we want if we join their ranks. Part of me is tempted to take the offer so I can ask for your safety but I know you would rather go into hiding in the muggle world than have either of us do that." Severus tentatively took her hand in his and was happy she didn't instantly shy away from him. It gave him the courage to say his next thoughts that he had never voiced. "I would do it. I would leave the magical world and live like a muggle for you. If you would have me that is."

Everything clicked together, like finding a missing piece of a puzzle. Well, one piece of a very holey puzzle. "Forevermore. You wrote those letters to me. I only got to read the last one and part of the one before that. I don't know how I forgot to go back to reading them but I somehow did. Did I write you back after that last letter?" Hermione felt guilty, even though she knew she shouldn't. Technically, it hadn't really been her here before the night of the 31st but he didn't know that. That thought also reminded her of another conversation she was going to have to have with her friends shortly. Severus and Dumbledore had been helping her in the last universe so her best bet was to ask them for help again.

"You figured out how to open our box with no memories... I'm not surprised. No, I suspect you were waiting to talk to me in person on the train. I went looking for you but only found your overly protective 'brothers' who would rather gut me than tell me where to find you." Severus sighed and rubbed his thumb over her knuckles. "Though seeing how you have lost your memories, I can see why they would want to keep me away from you. Maybe if they had, you would have stopped being friends with us and then they could hex us for breathing once again."

"That wont happen. I wont allow it." Hermione squeezed his hand reassuringly. "However, before you decide anything, there is something you need to know." She spotted Remus peeking around a corner and waved him over. "Something you both should know."

* * *

AN: And that's all I have for now. Again, thank you for reading. Please remember to favorite/follow if you want to be notified when I update. Please please please review if you have a moment to spare. Your feedback fuels the beast over here. LoL I hope you enjoyed and really hope to hear from you soon!

~EvieHana


	8. Chapter 8

AN: Hi! I'm back with another chapter. I got so excited after posting yesterday that I couldn't stop myself from pumping out another one. Again this one is slightly on the longer side. It seems like my output has increased to almost 3,000 words per chapter. LoL Anywho, we are getting right back into the thick of it. There is a lot of hints and clues in this chapter so pay attention! Enjoy!

 **Disclaimer: Wish I owned it. It would have had a happier ending and they never would have ruined it with that other book/play wrote by two dunderheads.**

Sakura2m: You are the light of my life. My muse. Never leave me. LoL Okay, on a less creepy note, I had to add Sirius' mom in there somewhere. We all know she is crazy and in the original timeline he was disowned by her. I just like it this way because it freed poor Regulus from having to take Sirius' place on the death eater sacrificial block. Remus has been and always will be in my mind a survivor above all else. That is something Slytherins tend to know all about and he is there for a reason.

Alexa SixT: You're welcome. Thank you for the love. Here's another chapter!

Guest: Thank you.

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It was Hermione's turn to pace restlessly in the headmaster's office as she tried to successfully explain what she so far knew of her situation. Both the headmaster and Severus had been inside her mind to check if she was being honest and to say there were both shocked would be an understatement. It seemed as though Dumbledore was taking it in stride though where as Severus seemed to revert back to his cold and somewhat aloof nature. Remus was completely gob-smacked and couldn't seem to get over the initial shock.

"We suspected this dark wizard was the root of it all and after my last encounter with him... It's a certainty in my mind. Who ever he is, he knows me and he's completely obsessed. I don't know why he is fixated on me but I supposed I will figure that out when his identity is revealed." Hermione clasped her hands together in front of her and sighed. "As for this universe, I'm kind of shocked at how different it is from the original one I found myself in. So much has changed..."

"That's understandable, my dear. There is a theory that there is infinite universes that all inhabit the same time but are independent from each other. Let us call the first universe you woke in 'world one'. There you were dating James Potter who was best friends with Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. When you woke in the next world, 'world two', Mr Potter was deeply in love with Lily Evans. The timeline is always subject to change which is why the slightest thing can make it so different from the last." Dumbledore was tugging lightly on his beard in thought.

"That's not accurate though. It was my interference in 'world one' that prevented James from being with Lily in the first place. She broke it off with him because of me which makes me think I am some kind of catalyst for all these changes. The more 'worlds' I inhabit, the more it gets jumbled than the last." Hermione found herself choking on her guilt. Not only was she messing everything up in her mind but she was standing next to a young man who loved her and talking about her love of one of his enemies.

"That could be a possibility but I believe that the headmaster may have used the wrong example. I think what he meant was that in 'world one', I could have had something as meaningless as a food allergy and in this 'world' I wouldn't. Something as simple as that can change everything and you wouldn't even have to be here as a catalyst to change that. I could die in 'world one' because of the food allergy but I wont just suddenly drop dead here because of a food allergy I don't have here and now." Finally seeming to come out of his shocked stupor, Remus' mind had caught on rather quickly to what the headmaster was getting at. "Also, for you to be bouncing from world to world but in the same timeline you would have to inhabit that part of the timeline. We all knew you before you remember waking up. Your presence here isn't a shock and it hasn't been in any world you have visited so far so the real question is what caused the bouncing to start?"

"That is something I have been asking myself since the first time it happened." The frustration rolling off the young woman was palpable and seemed to affect everyone.

Having been quietly taking everything in, Severus finally put his thoughts to words. "What we should be concerned over currently is the dark wizard. At any given time, he can infiltrate your mind and force you to do anything he wishes if the last universe is anything to go off of. Not only that, he is also killing you off in every world you have encountered which could be devastating the previous worlds. We can only guess what your existence there could have been, future Minister of Magic or stay at home mother of four children. He is robbing the future of you and it needs to be stopped which means _he_ needs to be stopped."

"I wouldn't have the first idea as to how to go back to the other worlds and check but if your theory is true that I need to inhabit that time in order to be there then I wouldn't be able to even if I could. Not only that but I could see how it would be tempting to stay in one of the other worlds. If I woke in a timeline where my friends were my enemies and I the ability to jump to another where my life was better, I can see the temptation." There was a heavy silence for a moment before a sharp pain in her head had Hermione falling to her knees whilst she clutched her head. Remus and Severus rushed to her side while the headmaster shot to his feet. "That's it isn't it... You son of a bitch... I can feel you in my head right now. These worlds aren't to your liking so you keep forcing us into another one until you get the one you want. Why?"

Another brutally sharp pain spiked through her head and Hermione's vision started to darken as the smell of blood assaulted her. She felt Severus dab at her nose before gently forcing her to look at him. His dark eyes pierced her and she could feel him enter her mind. The feeling of having Severus and the dark wizard fight for control over her was terrible, the pain almost enough to make her black out but she clung to his shoulders and kept the necessary eye contact. With one last mental shove, Severus was able to evict the dark wizard and quickly left her mind, pulling Hermione against him as she went limp in a faint.

"He's gone for now. Whoever this man is, he is dangerous and completely deranged. I could feel his intentions and she has every reason to fear him. Hermione was right but she didn't see his plans for her... I did and quite frankly I wish I hadn't." Severus slowly stood, carefully cradling Hermione in his arms. "I'll take her to the hospital wing."

"Very good, my boy. I'll let Poppy know you are on your way." Dumbledore slowly made his way to the floo while Remus and Severus slowly walked to the hospital wing, Hermione still unconscious in his arms.

"Is there any way to figure out who he is from your contact with his mind?" Remus felt his hackles rise, his wolf not happy in the least with how his pack was being threatened.

"I didn't get his identity but if I come into contact with his mind again, I will recognize him. It's not every day that you run into someone who is completely mad to that extent." Severus was going to have a very long shower before he even remotely felt clean after coming into contact with that man's mind. To think that it was constantly trying to control his girlfriend just infuriated him to a whole other level. _'But she isn't your girlfriend, is she? She has no memories of you and her consciousness is from another universe. You are nothing to her...'_

"Mate?" Remus waved a hand in front of his friend's face, trying to pull Severus out of his thoughts. "Where did you run off to? I asked you what you saw... What does the sick bastard want with her?"

Stopping in front of the hospital wing's massive doors, Severus' dark eyes met Remus' golden gaze, proof of his agitated state. "He wants what is his... He wants her."

* * *

Sighing at the light that fell on her face no matter which way she rolled, Hermione slowly came back from the wonderful dream she was having. It was the first time in quite a while that she could remember having a peaceful dream rather than a nightmare so she stored it away for later. Rubbing her eyes, Hermione sat up with a yawn and looked around the room. Massive windows, sterile environment and pristine made beds. She was definitely in the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey rushing to her side with a mild pain potion in her hand only confirmed it. "Good morning, dear. Take this. We were starting to worry you wouldn't wake up. You've been asleep for four days."

Hermione had taken the potion and almost spat it out when what the nurse said registered. She choked slightly before swallowing it. "Four days?! But..."

"Yes, dear. There was a mind healer here at the headmaster's request. He worked on you for quite a few hours before stating he had done what he could and that the rest was up to you. He will be by later to check up on you again and you will be released if he says you're fit enough to go back to class." The gentle but stern nurse took the vial back from her and straightened her bedding. "Your breakfast will be sent up shortly. All your friends have been by to check up on you. Would you like for me to send for anyone?"

Hermione fidgeted with her hands. She wanted to ask for James and Sirius but they didn't know anything about what was going on and she had no intention of giving them the real reason she was in the hospital wing. She wanted Severus and Remus as well but didn't want to start a war between her friends when they realized others were called for first. _'Ugh, why can't they all just get along?! Then I wouldn't have this problem!'_ She made up her mind. "No, just let them come in their own time. Um, if I could get some of my homework or a book to pass the time though until then, I would greatly appreciate it."

"Of course, dear. I'll see what I can do."

Thanking Madam Pomfrey before she rushed off, Hermione leaned against the metal headboard and pillows behind her and let her thoughts wander to the last thing she remembered. She went over her memories of the headmaster's office with a fine-toothed comb and felt the hair on the back of her neck rise in anger. The dark wizard was pulling her to different universes for some reason. She knew he was unsatisfied with the ones they landed in but why was he taking her along with him for the ride? That was the part that bothered her the most. _'Well, that and the fact that he is murdering me in the other universes. But all to what end... Why is he fixated on-'_

"Kit! You're finally awake!" Remus and Severus had come in sedately before rushing to her bed when they saw she was sitting up. The made use of the one chair by her bed, duplicating it so they could both sit beside her. "How are you feeling? Do you remember what happened? How long-"

"Remus!" Hermione laughed and swatted at him. "I can't answer if you don't stop asking me questions. I'm feeling fine. I had a bit of a headache when I woke up but Madam Pomfrey was instantly there with a pain potion. I'm waiting on the mind healer to come back to check on me then I can get out of here. Yes, I remember but what happened after? I remember you trying to shove him out and when I felt him leave... It just all went dark." She looked to Severus for answers.

Severus' reply was interrupted when a tall dark haired man who couldn't be more than 25-30 years old walked out of Madam Pomfrey's office and made his way to her bed. Dressed in dark blue robes, the man's pale skin seemed to glow in the sunlight but it was out shined by his soft smile. "Good morning, Miss Granger. I'm glad to see you are finally awake. I am Antonin Dolohov, first class mind healer." His soft spoken voice was almost as smooth as Severus' but carried a slight accent.

"Lovely to meet you. Thank you so much for helping me. Russian?" Hermione shook hands with the healer briefly, his hand slightly cold in her own.

"Yes, originally. My family moved here before I got my letter so I attended school here. My accent is very light from years of living and working in London." Healer Dolohov sat on the edge of her bed, too close to Hermione in Severus' mind, seeing how his blue robe clad thigh gently touched Hermione's blanket covered knee.

"Perhaps you were here for an examination so Hermione could return to class..." Severus' smooth tone could freeze a phoenix. It was clear that Remus didn't seem to like this mans overly friendly bedside manner either as his eyes flashed from hazel to gold.

"Yes, of course. If you wouldn't mind laying back, Miss Granger. You have to remain perfectly still." Healer Dolohov pulled his wand from his robes while Hermione made herself comfortable. Once she was settled, he did and intricate wave over her head and closed his eyes. "I can see that this man has tried numerous times to implant memories and compulsions within your mind. It almost leaves behind scorch marks on your psyche." He lowered his wand and opened his eyes before helping Hermione sit back up. "How long have you suffered from your memory loss?"

"August 31st I was hit with a quaffle and I don't remember anything before that." Sticking as close to the truth as possible was the best bet. She had tried to keep him away from her fractured memories and just let him assess the damage that had been done only. It seemed to have worked.

"Hm, curious..." Healer Dolohov put his wand away and his smile turned pensive. "I have honestly never seen anything quite like this in a living person. There have been a few victims that have popped up over the last year with signs like this but never to this extent. Have you been in contact with the Auror Department?"

"Yes, we have." Dumbledore spoke from Madam Pomfrey's door, making Hermione jump slightly at his sudden appearance. "It's good to see you again, Antonin. I take it everything checks out with Miss Granger and she can return to class?"

Healer Dolohov stood and shook hands with the headmaster and nodded. "Yes, there isn't much more I can do. I can try to rebuild some of her natural walls but I would need help of a strong Legilimens to make sure we're actually doing anything for her. I can get into contact with To-"

"I can do it." Severus cut in, not caring if the healer and headmaster found him rude. He wanted nothing more than to throw this man out on his ass and only his tenuous control on his temper stopped him from doing so. School rules and headmaster be damned.

Healer Dolohov looked like he was about to protest when Dumbledore softly cut in. "Yes, Severus Snape is a natural talent and quite strong. He will be able to go far in your field if he chooses to do so after graduating."

With no point to argue, Healer Dolohov relented. "If you are sure... I shall return tomorrow then and we will start after dinner." He turned to Hermione with a smile. "Rest as much as you can for the remainder of today. It's Sunday after all." Dumbledore escorted the healer back to Madam Pomfrey's office and most likely the floo.

The boys were never so happy to see someone leave and they both sighed and relaxed back into their seats. That didn't stop Hermione from tearing into them. "So, anyone plan on filling me in as to why you both looked like you wanted to kill him? He was just being friendly."

"A little too friendly." Severus grouched, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Yeah, hate to say it, Kit, but Severus is right. That man was way too handsy with you for my tastes. Blaez wanted to make him his newest chew toy." Remus flashed her a smile but it looked more dangerous than reassuring with his eyes still golden.

"Okay, let's just take this down a notch. The man was here to help and spent hours trying to repair my mind. Maybe possibly he felt closer to me because of that and that was the vibe you both are misunderstanding. It doesn't mean he's a bad person." Hermione rolled her eyes and stood, pulling her uniform out of the bedside drawer. Pulling the curtain shut as the boys turned their back to her, she changed her clothes while asking. "Is that what you call _'him'_ here then? Blaez? It's nice though I'm partial to 'Moony'. You still haven't told me why you call me 'Kit' by the way."

"Right, you wouldn't know that yet. That's your special little friend." She could hear Remus' smile in his voice. "Small, red and fluffy."

"No! You're joking! It was a barn owl before." Opening the curtains again, she tossed the hospital gown into the laundry shoot before sitting on the edge of her bed to buckle her Mary Jane's.

"Don't believe us? Try it for yourself."

* * *

At lunch, Hermione found herself surrounded by friends at the Gryffindor table. She had to convince Sirius several times that she was fine and she wasn't going to die from the quaffle. James and Peter took turns refilling her pumpkin juice and plate while Lily was trying to be helpful and catch her up on what she had missed in the last few days.

She glanced over at the Slytherin table and shot Severus and Remus a smile before mouthing 'HELP ME!' Remus found this hilarious and started laughing whereas Severus only sent her his trademark smirk.

* * *

AN: And that's it for today. I hope you all enjoyed. Did you catch them all? Did you? LoL I'm hoping this explained a little more in depth about what was happening. Be warned though, I'm going to earn that M rating in the next couple of chapters. Things are about to get very dark and bloody. Make sure to favorite/follow if you want a notification that I have updated this story. I would love you forever if you sent me a review with your thoughts/likes/critiques. See you soon and much love!

~EvieHana


	9. Chapter 9

_AN: Hello. I know I've been gone forever. I wont offer up excuses and instead just say that I'm sorry. I hope you all will excuse this smaller and extremely late chapter with the promise that another will be here shortly (And this chapter is pretty much from Severus' point of view since people seemed to like how I wrote him!). Thank you for all your kind messages/reviews and faves/follows. I appreciate them so much. Still no beta so all mistakes are my own._

 _Disclaimer_ _: Don't own it. Don't make money off it. Just fluff my brain comes up with playing with other peoples things. LoL_

 **!WARNING! There is a darker theme and torture at the end of this chapter (not very graphic but still wanted to make sure that everyone knew what they were getting into LoL). I warned you all in the last chapter that darker times were coming and they are starting here. I will mark the spot where it starts and if you want to skip it I will state what happened in my AN on the bottom. **

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"There doesn't seem to be a change at all. Like attacking a wet tissue with a sword." Severus sighed and crossed his arms. He hated doing this. The occlumency lessons hadn't seemed to be doing much for Hermione besides stress her out and exhaust her which had him constantly clenching his jaw to prevent him from accusing the healer of not doing his job properly. This was their third night of lessons spanning over a week and Severus was tempted to ask the headmaster to pull the plug on this senseless torture since the healer obviously had no intention of listening to a student.

The young woman in question pushed her curly hair away from her sweaty forehead, trying to catch her breath. "I'm sorry. I really am trying." Hermione almost felt the need to cry in frustration but kept her composure as much as she could, nibbling on her lower lip to keep the tears at bay.

"I know you are, Hermione. I'm just sorry that nothing I do seems to help." Healer Dolohov lay a comforting hand on her shoulder. "I think that is enough for tonight. You should go get some rest. You have class in the morning. I'll go speak to the headmaster about this and see what he thinks should be the next course of action. I hate to give up but I don't think continuing is going to help you any more than it already has."

If looks could kill, Antonin Dolohov would have dropped dead. Severus had only been saying that since their first lesson with him on Monday. He also wanted to blast the man's hand off for caressing her shoulder like that which she seemed too exhausted to notice. Smoothly moving between the healer and his girlfriend-friend-whatever they were now, Severus took her hand gently within his own. "Let's get you back to your tower, princess. Good night, Healer Dolohov." Manners had him shaking hands with the man for the first time and a flash of a memory hit Severus like a sledgehammer but he didn't let his cold facade drop in the slightest as his mental shields raised. He made sure to leave with Hermione at a sedate pace to make sure that all normalcy was displayed but he couldn't wait to get back to his room to get to Remus.

The walk to the Gryffindor common room was quiet besides their footsteps, Hermione hadn't released his hand and turned to him once they reached the corridor leading to the tower. She was nibbling on her lower lip again but this time in nervousness. "Severus... I know I'm not her, in your mind. I probably never will be but I want you to know that I- she loves you very much. I feel it when I read your letters. When you hold my hand. When you get all over protective. I'm going to do everything I can to make sure you get her back."

He tried, he really did. Severus didn't want to feel the warmth invading his chest and certainly didn't want to react the way he did but weeks of suppressed emotions crashed over him. He found himself pulling her into his arms and taking her sweet lips captive. That was the only way she could think to describe it before all thought was chased from her mind. His lips and tongue plundered her mouth in the most consuming way and she felt her body burn for him. If anyone asked her later, Hermione had no idea how long they stood there in the hall snogging the life out of each other but it did eventually come to an end, Severus nibbling on her lower lip lightly as his last little show of dominance before resting his forehead against hers.

"I wont let him have you. We will protect you, no matter the cost." He gave her one last peck on her brow before nudging her toward her common room. No more words were exchanged but then none where needed with the soft smiles they sent each other as she vanished into the safety of the Gryffindor tower. Severus stood there for a moment longer before heading to his own common with purpose in every step. He and Remus were about to go hunting.

* * *

The Forbidden Forest was exceptionally dark with only a sliver of the moon to pierce the thick canopy of trees. Remus had no problem navigating them deeper, looking for the specific clearing Severus had described. Having to amble himself back to the castle many mornings after the full moon, Remus had known exactly where they were going and his friend relied on his heightened senses to get them there.

Moments later, the pace slowed to a crawl as the scent he had been tracking became cloyingly clear. He could hear the telltale heartbeat of the wizard in the clearing just over the slight ridge before them and tapped Severus' hand on his shoulder twice to let him know they were there and needed complete stealth. Just as they were able to peek over the small hill, another figure apparated in the clearing before the Healer in very familiar black robes and a silver mask. The exact one Severus had seen in Hermione's mind. Her tormentor. Her murderer.

"Have we found a compatible timeline, Dolohov?" The masked man folded his arms across his chest, his wand in his right hand, tapping his left bicep in agitation. "I find myself growing weary of these jumps and would much like to 'set up shop' shall we say."

"I fear this one is not a match either, my lord. She is still putting up quite a fight but I fear what these jumps are doing to her mind. I don't think we can do more than a few more before she will lose all higher brain function. The current damage is irreparable and to continue to change timelines will only cause mo-" Dolohov seemed to get more and more nervous as he spoke, watching the wand in the masked man's hand slowly still before it whipped in his direction and caused him to fall to the forest floor in convulsions. Only Remus had caught the whispered 'crucio' on the masked man's lips.

"This isn't the first time you have mentioned this to me so you either assume I am unintelligent and don't understand you or that I care about your opinion on the matter." With another flick of his wrist, the masked man canceled his spell. "I do not care either way but I am sorely tempted to cut your tongue out, Dolohov. That wouldn't do us much good when we leave, now will it? No, so I suggest you keep your thoughts to yourself since this you seems to have a bleeding heart. I'm tempted to remove that as well."

"I'm sorry, my lord. My profession in this timeline has made my-his mind stronger and his thoughts seem to bleed through when it is something he feels strongly about." Stifling groans, Dolohov slowly climbed to his knees but did not rise to his feet. "Keeping my other mind caged has not been easy."

"I do not care for your excuses either. I want results. We leave in two days. Take care of her and I will see you on the other side." With a nearly soundless crack, the masked man was gone.

That was their cue, with his increased speed, Remus was over the ridge and rushing Dolohov. The Healer's sluggish movements made his spellwork slow and sloppy, the nearly worthless stunner hit the werewolf and did nothing to stop him from manhandling him into a neck-hold. Severus disarmed Dolohov, catching the Healer's wand deftly before making his way to them with his wand lit. "It seems I was right and you are just wasting her time. However, I didn't know you were in on this until you touched my hand earlier today. I have a feeling that the other you locked inside your brain was very insistent of me catching on to what you were doing. He was practically screaming for help. What has me really curious is how did you make it passed Dumbledore. His legilimency is better than mine and he should have saw right thought you that first day in the hospital wing."

 **!WARNING! Torture ahead! Skip to AN for a brief explanation!**

With his jaw firmly clenched shut, Dolohov did nothing but glare daggers at the two students. It became obvious that he was not going to talk of his own volition so Remus pushed the man flat on his back, crouched over his chest and took the Healer's left hand in both of his. Eyes flashing gold met terrified hazel. A loud snap was followed by a pained whimper from the Healer. "That's one out of 28 small bones in your fingers. Would you like me to continue or do you plan on speaking to us now?" When there was no response besides heavy breathing and increased heart rate, Remus moved to the second small bone in the pinky and started to apply pressure as he spoke. "You know that sweet girl you two sick fucks are messing with is part of my pack? Probably should have found that out before you started messing with her." Another loud snap sounded in the clearing followed by a harsh gasp. "I don't know what kind of push over I was in the other places you've been but I can tell you that I'm not afraid to get my hands dirty here."

Laughter caused the young men to still. The madness could clearly be seen in Dolohov's eyes now that he was no longer trying to hide the monster within. "You really think torturing me is going to get you anything? I can only assume you were listening in. I wont be here for much longer so what do I care what you do to this body. I wont be the one left rotting away in it. You're torturing an innocent man who will have you both tossed into Azkaban once I'm gone."

"What happens if you die before your departure time?" Severus asked as he dug his glowing wand into the Healer's neck. Dolohov's already pale skin turned a sickening shade of white and both young men smirked down at him.

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 _AN: Okay so if you skipped the warned section, you missed Remus torturing Dolohov for information. Dolohov wouldn't give them anything. Severus asked what would happen if they killed him before he was to leave the timeline to which he goes deathly pale and then the end of the chapter._

 _Yep, definitely not sunshine and rainbows. LoL Anywho, I'll be working over the next week to get the next chapter out. I wanted to go a head and write it all a head of time before posting but it just didn't seem to want to happen that way. I honestly had the first half of this chapter written since the day after the last time I uploaded... Kept staring at it and nothing happened. (But that kiss though! And a dark Remus. Muwhahaha!) So, tell me what you think! Please drop me a pm or review! If you're new to the story and like what you see, remember to fave/follow so you will know when the next chapter is uploaded. See you all soon!_

 _~Evie Hana_


	10. Chapter 10

_AN: HOLY COW! I have over 4K veiws! I just want to thank you all again for sticking around and showering me with love and encouragement. Every fav/follow/review just makes me feel that much more inspired to write._

 ** _There will be another graphic warning! Skip to the designated area if you want to avoid it._**

 _Little side note here before we start! I don't know where I have been because some how I have never seen this before today but if you go on YouTube and look up "Severus Snape and the Marauders" by Broad Strokes... You will probably have a heart attack fangirling like I did. LoL It's an amazing fan-made short film (25:34 minutes). You should really go watch it especially if you like my Severus! I solemnly swear I didn't base mine of of theirs._

 _Dramione1028: They always made sense to me because Remus was always the reluctant one to ever bully Severus in the first place. The "what if Remus was a Slytherin?" aspect just made me think that because of their higher intelligence and common factor of loving Hermione, though in different ways, would be a great glue to hold them together. Oh believe me, Antonin will be feeling all sorts of pain._

 _Shola2001: Thank you. Much love!_

* * *

Hermione was on cloud nine and seemed to just float that morning down to breakfast. Lily poked her boyfriend in the side and nodded in the other girls direction. Silent communication continued between them until Sirius nudged James who took the quick glanced hints and observed their other friend closely.

"So, who do we have to beat up and threaten like the big brothers we are?" James' complete lack of tact had Lily facepalming while Sirius snickered.

Snapping out of her happy daze, Hermione glared at the messy boy. "Don't even think for a moment that you are allowed to anything of the sort, James Potter. I will not stand for it."

"Ooh, touchy. That means that it is most likely one of her pet snakes." Sirius fake whispered to Lily who hit his shoulder playfully.

"Oh, stop it you two! Let the poor girl bask in her new love before you start sticking your noses where they don't belong." Lily glared at the boys for a moment before turning her smile towards her girl friend. "Ignore them, Mia. I'm just glad that someone has been able to make you smile like that. You need that kind of distraction. Don't think that I haven't noticed you've been working yourself into the ground."

Feeling her cheeks burn, Hermione cleared her throat delicately before changing the subject. "It was the late night classes with that Healer I told you about. My last lesson with him was last night as far as I can tell so I shouldn't be as stressed for a bit." Hermione paid no mind to the owls that were delivering the morning mail until a letter dropped onto her sleeve. She found herself smiling when she saw the insignia on the wax seal. A small three pointed crown atop a 'P' with three English roses at it's base. She glanced towards the Slytherin table and caught the dark gaze watching her. Feeling her lips curl into a smile, Hermione quickly opened her letter.

 _'October 7th, 1977_

 _My dearest,_

 _I found myself unable to sleep last night with thoughts of you. Your words kept tumbling through my head and I just couldn't seem to rest until I cleared up the misunderstanding on my side at least. I do not think of you as a different person. I know that you lack the memories of what we had before you were brought here but you said it yourself that you can feel the love that we shared when reading my letters. When you hold my hand. When I kiss you. Before you deny it, I could clearly see it all over your face once I had pulled away from you. To say that you are completely endearing would be an understatement._

 _That has not changed for me either. Even if you never remember what we used to have, I will happily make new memories with you. It is my wish that you stay here with me. I want to keep you safe and one day, if you are ready, you may finally say yes again when I muster up the courage to ask you for the second time to always be mine. Not all of us can be Gryffindors so it may take a bit. Keeping you safe comes first._

 _However, tomorrow is Hogsmeade weekend and I would be delighted if you would accompany me._

 _Yours,_

 _Forevermore'_

Not even James and Sirius' snarking about beating up her unidentified boyfriend could bring her down from her cloud again. She was left floating for the rest of the day.

* * *

Being called into the headmaster's office was never a good thing though Hermione was completely blindsided as to the reason. "Healer Dolohov..."

"Yes, Miss Granger. His body was found this morning by Hagrid. Aurors have quietly searched the area and have found nothing. They could tell that he had been tortured both with dark magic and with brute force." Dumbledore stopped for a moment to let that sink in before he continued. "I have to ask if any of you know anything about this..." The twinkle he was famous for was no where in sight.

"Of course not, Professor. Severus and I were with him until the end of our session and then Severus escorted me to the tower. I went straight to bed." Hermione looked to the boys for their explanations.

"I went back to the dungeons and met up with Remus in the common room. We did homework and then went to our dorm shortly after." Severus supplied with a steady voice, his hands locked behind his back as he usually stood. He had thought to tell Dumbledore about his find in Dolohov's twisted mind but they agreed it would have put too much suspicion on them. Staying silent but nodding to corroborate with his friends tale, Remus stood with his arms crossed over his chest behind the chair Hermione was seated in.

Nodding, Dumbledore continued. "Yes, I saw Healer Dolohov after your session and he seemed quite frustrated and anxious to leave. He mentioned that you were not making any progress and that he doubted anything more could be done for you with his help." The older wizard bridged his hands before him, resting his elbows on his desk, looking every bit of his age. "I have kept this all quiet as not to alarm the students or their families. Hogsmeade will still be open to you students as long as word of this does not get out in the mean time. Your digression would be much appreciated."

"Of course, Professor. We will keep this to ourselves. I hope you find who did this." Hermione was slightly in shock but really felt the need to leave and bury herself in work of some kind. With whispered good-byes, she stood and took the boys by their elbows and started the long walk to the library.

"Are you okay, Kit?" Remus asked, nudging her shoulder lightly. That seemed to break her out of her thoughts.

"Yes, I'm just a little shocked that he's gone. You don't think it was because he was seeing me... Do you?" Hermione found herself nibbling on her lower lip at the troubling thought. What if it had been the masked man? Had he been snooping in her head again and saw the kind wizard trying to help her and had murdered him for it? If it wasnt' safe for grown wizards to be around her then what would happen if the masked man thought Severus and Remus were a threat? Just the thought of someone hurting them made a small whine creep up her throat.

Severus sighed and pulled her into an alcove and Remus stayed just on the outside leaning against the wall, keeping guard. He didn't need to be a ligilimens to know where her mind had lead her. Rather than upset her with the truth, Severus would just comfort her and come up with an explanation later. "It wasn't because of you, love. You can not put the blame for everything on yourself." He brought his lips to hers briefly, knowing if he stayed there too long they would be there far longer than they should. "By the way, you never did give me an answer. Will you be going to Hogsmeade with me or tagging along with the Gryffindorks?"

Giggling, Hermione playfully slapped Severus' chest. "Of course I'm going with you. Watching Sirius and Lily snog is not high on my priority list. Honestly, it just creeps me out for some reason."

"Is it residue jealousy?" He did his best to make his face blank and his voice toneless. The thought of Hermione still pining over someone like Black made him want to break things. Repeatedly.

"What? Of c..." She stopped and shook her head before standing on tip toe to plant another kiss on his lips. "No, Severus Snape. I'm not jealous over Lily and Sirius. My feelings from the last world died with that body and I haven't wanted him in that way since I've been here. It's strange to feel like that, to be able to instantly change who I love after waking up here but that is what I've currently been dealt and I happen to quite like it here."

"Good because I don't plan on letting you go anytime soon." Severus felt a genuine smile touch his kiss heated lips and would have much rather stayed in that nook all night if it wasn't for a red faced werewolf clearing his throat rather loudly just then.

"I don't know about you two but I have a potions essay and sixteen inches of Defense I haven't started calling my name" Remus snickered. He was about to tease some more when his eyes shifted to gold for a moment. "Evans and Black are about to come around the corner."

They were resuming their walk to the library as if nothing had happened by the time Sirius and Lily came around the bend. "Hermione! Wait up!" The happy couple hurried after them to catch up. "We figured this was where you would be and were wondering if you would mind two more for your study group?"

"Please don't make him beg. He's been whining all morning about how he needs extra help in potions before he kills someone." Lily rolled her eyes but smiled all the while to let on she was just teasing.

"At least he admits he needs help. That's the first step." Severus drawled, with a small half smirk. "I will help you, Black, but if you don't get it the first time I explain it then you are on your own."

Sirius looked like he wanted to say something cutting but Lily quickly cut in while squeezing his hand. "That's wonderful. Thank you, Severus! Shall we?"

The trio lead the way, Hermione's right arm hooked in Remus' while her left hand was tangled with Severus'. Neither Gryffindor missed that as they walked but chose to say nothing about it besides Lily's sweet smile and Sirius' 'I told you so' lopsided smirk.

* * *

A cascade of burnt orange, crimson and earthy brown had Hermione frolicking like a small child, kicking more leaves into the air while she laughed. She didn't know why but she felt more free today than she had in a long time. Severus smiled at the sight and just followed behind her, committing everything to memory. Unlike his girlfriend, he was worried at any moment this would come to an end. He was on edge and could't find the source for his unease the closer they got to Hogsmeade.

It was when Hermione fell back into a pile of leaves that he almost loosened up until he saw her pained expression and a trickle of red falling from her nose to her rosy lips. Abandoning all thought, Severus rushed to her side and fell to his knees, cupping her face in his hands. "Hermione!" She nodded and focused on his eyes. Without second thought, Severus sank into her mind.

'Ah, there you are. I have to say, I was rather upset when I discovered what you did to Dolohov. He was failing me but he was still mine and you stole him from me. I don't take too kindly to that.' The silver mask seemed to flash in her mind, reflecting the man's anger.

'Healer Dolohov was working for you? But then why was he trying to help me? Severus had nothing to do with his death!' Hermione tried expelling the man but it seemed to do nothing besides make him laugh cruelly at the attempt.

'So, he didn't tell you then.' He cackled again before continuing. 'What a pity. I have to admit that I was rather impressed with the carnage the two of you left on top of the fact that they had to use multiple bags to get his body out of the forest. All with having never cast a spell. The only spell they had to trace was my Cruciatus. Very adept at covering your trail. How very Slytherin of you, Severus Snape.'

Complete shock and horror had her golden brown eyes tearing up but she was unable to blink or look away from the black pools staring down at her. 'Two of you... You and Remus...'

 **!WARNING! GRAPHIC TORTURE! SKIP THIS IF SQUEEMISH!**

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'Oh, yes, they tortured Dolohov for hours trying to get him to explain what my plan was. What they didn't know is that the poor man only knew the basics of what I've been doing in the first place. From what I was told, they broke all the bones in his extremities before physically ripping his limbs from his torso. Dolohov begged for his life and they let him bleed to death before their eyes.'

Her mind flooded with snapshots of the healer's mutilated body strewn about a clearing in the Forbidden Forest. Blood and gore soaked the forest floor, Dolohov's lifeless torso rest at the base of a tree, eyes unseeing and glazed over in death. A gaping hole in his stomach had his internal organs spilling out to cover the torn flesh at the bottom of his hips, acting as a grotesque apron. A shredded leg on top of a large stone. An arm rained blood down from a tree branch above, bent at awkward angles proving that the bones had be broken in several places.

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 **!WARNING OVER! CONTINUE!**

Severus grunted in his effort to stop the images but the force behind them was too great.

'Stop... No more... STOP IT!' Hermione physically screamed and forced both men from her head, leaving her panting and sobbing in the leaves.

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 _AN: And there you have it! Please let me know what you think via review or even a PM. I would really like to know your thoughts. Thank you so much for reading! If you are new to my story and would like to be informed when I update, don't forget to favorite/follow. I'll be seeing you really soon and I caution you to keep tissues handy for the next chapter. Fair warning._

 _Much love,_

 _~Evie Hana_


	11. Chapter 11

_AN: Aaaaaand like I said in the last chapter, I hope you brought your tissues because I can honestly say that I cried when I wrote this. No joke. **I'm not going to bother with a graphic warning** in this one because then you would miss a section of the story that I really really think you need to see. I would't be able to do it justice if I just give you the words without any real context into what's actually going on. _

_Disclaimer: Not mine. If it was, "The Cursed Child" would not be cannon now. It belongs here with all the other questionable fanfiction. LoL_

 _LuV3nZbLu-hIm3: LoL I warned everyone that I was going to earn that M rating. I'm glad you liked the chapter and love my story. We're in for some more fun and slightly grotesque moments so brace yourself._

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Fluffy clouds floated by slowly in the blue-grey sky above, causing the sunlight to dim before glowing bright over the girl who lay in a mound of leaves. Hermione had been afraid to move and refused to take her eyes away from the vast expanse above her to look at the young man who gripped her face and demanded to know if she was okay. No, she wasn't okay. Her best friend and boyfriend had murdered a man last night... Because of her. They had done it for her and the guilt was eating her alive.

The flashes of the torture Dolohov had endured tormented her mind and Hermione felt more tears fall from her eyes, trailing along her temples to vanish into her curly hair.

"Hermione, please... Look at me. Let me explain." Severus' thumbs brushed the trails of tears away as he tried to warm her too cool skin. Shock was setting in and her body trembled as her skin lost it's healthy glow, turning pale. "Hermione, it's not safe here. We should get back to the castle. We're too exposed and I promise I will explain everything to you."

Knowing he was right didn't make her want to move but she felt her body start to lift with his assistance. They were slowly making their way back up the hill along the trail to the gate when a flash of silver out of the corner of her eye had Hermione acting on instinct, shoving Severus to the ground. White slashed through the air and hit Hermione in the chest, catapulting her backwards.

Finding herself once again staring at the sky, she was confused as to why her chest felt so warm but then something started dripping down her sides, tickling her skin.

Severus made it to his feet just in time to see the man in the silver mask apparate away. He grit his teeth in a snarl before turning to find Hermione. Red stained her beige pea coat and covered the hand that she had brought up to her face. "No!" For the second time that morning, Severus found himself on his knees next to her, but this time pressing his hands to the gaping wound that slashed across her chest from her left shoulder to her right hip. The white of her collar bone, sternum and ribs could be seen peeking between his splayed fingers as he tried to push her flesh back together. The worst seemed to be where her shoulder met her neck. The flow gushed between his fingers no matter how much he pressed on it. The spell had nicked an artery.

A scream from a few feet away had his head jerking up, seeing a couple of fourth years on their way down on the path. "Run and get help! She's been attacked!" He didn't watch as they dashed back through the gate and up to the castle, screaming for help all the while. "Hermione, look at me. Focus on me. Help is on the way. Just hold on."

Whiskey eyes met and locked on black. "Sev, it was worth it. Promise me that you wont give up. Don't let the darkness win and consume you. I love you, Sev..." He felt his soul shatter as for the second time he watched the light leave someone's eyes as they succumbed to death. A heart wrenching cry came out of the boy as he gathered Hermione's body into his arms, dropping kiss after kiss upon her cooling skin, wishing that love's kiss did miracles like in fairy tales.

The Hogwarts staff found him there less than a minute later, sobbing into her hair as he refused to let her body go.

* * *

Sighing, Hermione refused to open her eyes. She refused to believe that she was waking up in another timeline. Her heart felt heavy but empty at the same time when she thought of how she had left Severus. Having grown tired of the bouncing two worlds ago, having left things the way she did last time had her crying and bringing her hands up to her face.

A noise from across the room had Hermione jumping out of bed and casting a lumos, before shoving her wand into another girl's face. The dark haired girl had rolled over in her twin sized bed towards Hermione and grunted when the light met her closed eyes. "'Mione, get that light out of my face before I shove your wand somewhere uncomfortable. We leave for the train station first thing in the morning and if I don't get a couple more hours of sleep, I will strangle you before we get there." The calm but tired voice didn't belong to Lily or any other girl she could remember associating with in Gryffindor but obviously a witch if she knew about her wand.

Completely confused, Hermione turned back towards her bed and realized that she obviously was not at Clayborne Manor. The room was smaller and had two of everything in it. Two twin sized beds, two bedside tables and their school trunks a the foot of their beds. Hermione picked up a small journal on her bedside table and looked at the date of the last entry. August 31st. Not knowing what to expect but knowing there wasn't much she could do, she climbed back into her small bed, pulled her rather thin blanket up under her chin and forced herself to go back to sleep.

The next morning, Hermione found out that she was in an orphanage in muggle London, her roommate was Emmeline Vance, a half blood whose pureblood grandparents refused to take her in when her pureblood father and muggle mother died tragically in the middle night because of their unconventional love. Her muggle grandparents had long been dead so she had no where else to go. The girl was beautiful and stately bordering on statuesque, with a grand manner but soft yet commanding voice paired with startling blue eyes. Her black hair was long and just as curly and uncontrollable as Hermione's own. Her barely five foot frame made her look like a perfect porcelain doll.

"The boys got in trouble for hitting you with the football. Madame Danvers almost screamed herself into a state tearing into them." Emmeline sighed as she opened her Arithmancy book in her lap. They had managed to find an empty compartment near the back of the train and thus far hadn't run into anyone Hermione knew. "The doctor warned her that you should be taken to the hospital for a full screening but she told him that you were off to a private boarding school that had a doctor that would take care of you. He wasn't too pleased but didn't argue with her. How severe is the memory loss?"

"Put it this way, I didn't know who you were when I woke up last night. When I heard you move, I thought you were an intruder and I was seconds away from stunning you." Hermione rubbed her forehead in agitation. "What can you tell me about myself? I remember the basics of Hogwarts but nothing personal. Who are my friends? What do I like to do in my spare time? Who are our other room mates?"

"Well, that's quite a bit then. I'm sorry, Hermione. If I would have known we could have talked last night." Clearly feeling bad, Emmeline set her book aside and lay her hand on Hermione's arm. "Four years ago, you were found wandering muggle London with nothing but the clothing you were wearing and a wand. You couldn't remember anything but your name and age. They brought you to the orphanage and you were roomed with me. I had just gotten there myself and I told you all about Hogwarts and how I thought you would be joining me there." Emmeline motioned for Hermione to turn away from her and started plaiting her hair into a large Dutch braid. "No one ever came to claim you and your parents were never found. We weren't surprised when you received your letter shortly after you got there. You were sorted into Ravenclaw with me and you were caught up with the rest of us within weeks of being there. It was almost as if you already knew all the curriculum. Tabatha and Tara McKay are our other room mates. Twin trouble more like. They keep things interesting for us. We are all friends and study every day together at a table we have pretty much reserved since first year in the back right corner of the library. Other than each other, we don't really socialize. Tara started dating a boy from Hufflepuff last year though. From what I gather from her letters this summer, they are still together. Tabatha lowered herself to seeing Sirius Black for a few days last year. You and I have pretty much ignored boys for our studies and haven't changed that. Maybe this year that may change." Tying off the braid with an accioed hair elastic, the girls returned to their previous position.

Processing the new life and filing it away for further inspection later, Hermione smiled at her new friend and lay her hand over hers. "Thank you for being so kind and understanding. I can just imagine what kind of frantic mess I would be in if I didn't have you here." That brought up images of her chaotic attempt to escape Clayborne Manor the first time she remembered waking up.

"Of course, Hermione. Just stay close to me for the first few days until you remember where everything is. Usually, our schedules are the same. If you need anything just come to me." They shared a friendly smile but Hermione was waiting for the other shoe to drop as it always did.

* * *

The feeling of dark magic made Hermione shiver and pause right inside the Great Hall doors. After being close to the silver masked man several times, it was a feeling she would never be able to shake off as nothing. She scanned the professor table and her eyes met and held the non-twinkling arctic blue of Albus Dumbledore. His hair and beard were pure white and gone were his usual bright colored robes for sedate and unassuming grey. The darkness she was feeling was coming from him in waves and it terrified her. To be in a world where Albus Dumbledore of all wizards was not a wizard of the light was a horrifying thing.

Emmeline linked arms with her and gently tugged her to sit at the Ravenclaw table with her where they ran into the twins. "It's about time you lot got here." Tara was the older twin by two minutes and kept her dark brown hair on the long side but always pulled up into a tail out of her moss green eyes.

The sorting of the first years had started but Hermione wasn't paying any attention to it.

Tabatha smiled at them from across the table. Her hair was cropped into a smart bob at her chin with her part on the left side of her face causing some of her hair to drape over her right eye. It was that hair that pulled her focus enough to notice that while her left eye was identical in color to her sister, her right was a blue-green almost teal color. " 'Mione, are you feeling alright?"

"Yes, sorry. My memory is a bit faulty right now so some things are taking me a minute or two to process. Football accident the other day." Hermione shook it off and sat at the bench. "Sorry for staring. Just forgot how pretty your eyes were. Aaaand that was awkward. Sorry." She felt like sliding under the table in embarrassment as her face flamed.

"Oh no! How are you feeling?"

"Do you need to go see Madame Pomfrey?" The twins spoke at the same time and Hermione just smiled sheepishly and shook her head.

Professor Dumbledore stood and made his way to the podium and all fell silent. "Welcome to the new students and welcome back to those of you returning for another year. As always, the Forbidden Forest is forbidden to all students. Also, we have a new teacher joining us this year. New for most of you anyway." Dumbledore paused to let a tall man stand. He had short black curls and very dark, possibly black, eyes and a charming smile on his quite handsome face. He seemed to be in his late thirties to early forties judging his laugh lines, though Hermione couldn't be sure. Magic folk and their extremely slow aging always made it hard for her to accurately guess. "Taking back his position for Defense Against the DarkArts is Professor Tom Riddle. I expect you all to show excellence in his class. Let the feast begin."

The food appeared but Hermione couldn't seem to force herself to reach for it. Everything felt wrong and she wanted so much to go back to the last world. "Emmeline, there is two things that are really bugging me. Everything else can wait... First, what is Professor Dumbledore's story? Is he dark?"

"It's been a rumor for decades that he more than dabbled in the dark arts when he was crusading around with Gellert Grindelwald in his younger years. A lover's quarrel is what sent them on different paths. From what is written, and according to public belief, he hasn't touched anything even questionably dark since. It is also rumored that before the split, Gellert placed a dark curse on Dumbledore and that is why he has the dark aura everyone feels when they get close to him. This dark curse is also the reason Dumbledore was never able to take Gellert down. If he ever came close to him again, the curse would activate and kill him instantly." Emmeline took a delicate bite of her chicken before smiling. "Rather romantic isn't it? Scorned lover curses his love to never be in his presence again for fear of his broken heart killing him. Worthy of Shakespeare, honestly."

The greatest wizard of the light had gone dark for love. And a fleeting one at that. "And what happened to Gellert Grindelwald?"

"That is where our dear DADA professor comes in. Tom Riddle, wizard of the light, war hero, Order of Merlin first class. He has been gone for six years chasing Grindelwald and just returned after vanquishing him. I plan on thanking him after my first class with him. Grindelwald's fanatics killed my parents. We aren't of the sacred twenty-eight but my father was influential enough to make them angry when he married my mother. They made them an example." Emmeline seemed to drift off in her thoughts for a moment before shaking her head a going back to her food. "I'm glad the war is over."

"If Grindelwald is dead then why is Dumbledore still cursed?" Hermione wondered out loud.

"It was traced back to a very old blood curse. There is no cure. It is said that blood malediction can be passed down to your descendants. Grindelwald wanted Dumbledore to suffer if he lived or died. He is forced to live a solitary life for fear of passing the curse to anyone else. The curse will die with him as long as he has no heirs." Tara supplied, voice barely above a whisper.

* * *

 _AN: And that's all for today. Blood malediction is the only thing that I even remotely liked from The Cursed Child. I loved the concept of a curse so strong that it could wipe out a bloodline if provoked and I did tinker with it a bit to make it more deadly in this case. I don't know if you can tell, I have never really like Dumbledore. All his talk about 'The Greater Good' always struck me as a bit off and now knowing what we do about Grindelwald's Army, he still just seems like another closet fanatic. I tried to put off moving Hermione to a new universe as long as I could. Technically, she was supposed to be fully established last chapter into the new one but I just didn't have the heart to do it so quick. I thought Severus needed one more moment and there it is._

 _Dark Dumbledore. Albus/Gellert love spat. War hero for the light Tom Riddle (who is 51ish at this time btw. I had to do the math and giggled when I thought of how Hermione's face would look when she figures it out. LoL Think Lucius Malfoy after the final battle but not nearly as battle worn). That opening scene! Omg, I need another tissue just thinking about it. Emmeline is cannon but there is very little of her on Pottermore or Wiki so I just had fun and ran with her character. Tara and Tabatha are all mine. I'm of a mind to draw them but I haven't done that in a while. LoL Maybe if someone asks. Anywho, please make sure to leave me your thoughts in a review or pm. If you're new to my story make sure to favorite/follow if you would like to know when I update._

 _Much love,_

 _~Evie Hana_


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